Healing Hands
by heybay101
Summary: The past can come back to haunt, or help. It all depends on your situation in life. For Lirri, she thought meeting Ben was a blessing, little did she know it may have very well been a fatal error. Ben Solo/Kylo Ren X OC
1. Chapter 1

**This is being edited and reworked as of December 16, 2017. I am just improving the texts and writing for I found I was missing quite a few details. I hope you all enjoy this.**

Ben was walking through the halls of the new building. It was a simple building on some island in Kashyyyk that was quite pleasant with plenty of greenery and rivers around. It seemed like a beautiful place to spend the next few years with training. He was being guided around and shown the many doors. Some had markings, identifying what they were. There was medical, indoor training rooms, kitchen, washrooms and dining hall. Ben's Uncle Luke walked in front of him, as he explained information regarding the building.

Ben was barely listening to his uncle, more just thinking about the new situation. His mother had sent him away to learn from his Uncle. A man who was in charge of the next generation of Jedi by themselves. Ben did notice that he had grown quite a bit since he had last seen his uncle a few years prior. It was at least 5 inches taller than Luke, but he suppose that is what happens when the last time you see your relatives was before puberty.

There were students, varying in ages younger than he was. They were gawking at him as he passed following Luke. He nodded to them as they walked between the rooms.

"-hall for dinner at 6, provided by Lirri." Luke finished as Ben looked forward again. He raised a dark brow as Luke looked to him.

"Lirri? That sounds like a bizarre name to give a droid." Ben remarked as they continued walking until they reached a room marked with the number 6. Bright blue eyes that were still youthful even with the wrinkles and show of age around them connected with Ben's dark brown eyes.

"Lirri is more of my assistant. She's a senior student that helps with the demonstrations, but mainly cooks and tends the medic needs due to the sheer amount of students." Luke explained as he opened the door with a small wooshing noise. The pair walked in, with Luke going first. Ben's head was about an inch from hitting the door as he saw how generic the room was. To the left corner, there was a bed with white sheets and a couple of pillows. A desk was provided with stationary available, although the first page had a "Welcome to the island Ben!" note in unfamiliar handwriting that was under an empty window sill. At the foot of the bed was a small trunk and on the right side of the room, a closet.

At the side of the trunk was the duffel bag that had been taken off the ship and carried here for him so he could have the full tour by his uncle.

"We'll be having dinner soon if you'd like to join us tonight. I know you may be tired. You can talk with Lirri in regards to food allergies that you have." Luke said as Ben bit his lip, fighting back the response that his uncle should know his allergies. Luke gave him a soft smile as he put his left hand on Ben's shoulder.

"I am happy to see you, I hope the time here will be good to help you grow and learn your skills."

"I hope so as well." Ben spoke as he was left alone in the bare room. He laid on the bed as he contemplated everything that had happened in the last few days. Logically, he knew that he should have left to train much sooner but his Mother insisted on him staying around. She allowed him to freely test his training as she supplemented the best she could with her minimum experience. Ben wouldn't say it, but he was glad he was gone from his parents. They spent most of their time arguing with each other before Han would storm away and leave Leia crying. Or on occasion, the opposite where Han would drink and tell his son that marriage life wasn't good.

-  
Lirri had been bustling around the kitchen, trying to complete dinner for tonight for all the Padawans. Normally, that wouldn't be an issue but there was a Padawan who was sick as could be so she was trying to run between the two while also keeping hygiene up as to not spread the illness.

Her short dark auburn hair was pushed back with a headband so she could focus. There was a large bowl of mixed vegetables with oil and spices as she felt the sudden feeling that something was happening in the medical room. Cussing, Lirri tossed the trays of vegetable into the oven's lowest rack with a couple chickens on the rack above. She was thankful it was a large enough oven to feed everyone in one go.

Lirri cussed under her breath as she headed to the medical room. She found the boy, a Magnar trying to get out of the bed. Nearly toppling over as Lirri caught him and escorted him back to the bed.

"I just want to get back to training. Why can't I be healed?"

"Your immune system cannot strengthen if we healed this away. Now lay down and rest. There is water beside you and I will bring you food later. I'll try to bring some books or other entertainment for you tonight."

Magnar nodded weakly as she pressed a cold compress on his forehead. She waited until the padawan drifted off to sleep before washing her hands and arms as she glanced to the clock and time.

Lirri couldn't remember how long the food had been in but she was worried about it burning as she chose to run down the hall to the kitchen, thinking to herself what she needed to do.

The next moment her body collided with the ground as she let out a string of curses before she peeked an eye open and sat up on the ground. There was another person on the floor too. Lirri crawled over to the dark haired boy as she rubbed his head. "Please don't have a concussion." she pleaded. "This is not what I need today."

Brown eyes opened to her as she let out a loud sigh of relief before pulling a tiny flashlight out of her pocket as the man sat up beside her as he scowled. She shone it in both eyes as he responded normally to the light as she moved it. Lirri wouldn't state it, but the boy had lovely brown eyes.

"Okay sorry about that. You seem all good but just in case, do you know your name?" Lirri asked as she stood up. "I'm Lirri."

"Ben. Ben Solo." He quietly spoke as Lirri held her hand out to help him up. He took it cautiously as she smiled at him.

"Well Ben, it's a pleasure to meet you in person. Everything looks okay but if you feel unwell, let me know." His larger hands were soft as she flushed and looked up at him. He was a good head taller than she was. Immediately her mind told her that he'd have to lean down to ever be face to face with her or whisper.

Reluctantly, she let go of his hand as she started walking backwards towards the table. "I'll… see you at dinner?" she offered before turning and running to the kitchens to make sure nothing was too burnt.


	2. Chapter 2

**I hope you guys are enjoying this story so far- I'm going to try and update as much as possible in the next few days and I have some pretty interesting stuff planned for the next chapter.**

 **I've edited this as of December 16, 2017 to improve the written work.**

Unfortunately, Lirri had not seen Ben with a chance to speak with him in the days after she had crashed into Ben. Any free time she had was occupied was dealing with this cold going around, helping younger Padawans with their trainings or completing tasks for Master Skywalker. Finally, Luke had strongly encouraged Lirri to join everyone in the afternoon meditation outside. He insisted since it was a beautiful sunny day.

However, she was running behind because she was trying to actually eat lunch for once while she was trying to clean up the last of the dirty dishes. It became an unfortunate habit for her to wait until everyone else had gotten their portions and ate before she had. Lirri had just shovelled the last few spoonful of rice in her mouth as she tried washing the dishes quickly.

Lirri swallowed the large portion as she stretched her arms upwards as he walked towards the general meeting spot where everyone else probably was.

She wondered how Ben was doing with the other students. He seemed to be a few years older than the older group of Padawans. Lirri had a gut feeling that Ben was going to struggle to make some friends with the age difference. It was just a concern of hers, for all she knew Ben could be creating a large network of friends already.

Lirri headed down the stony path as she noticed Ben looking quite confused as his head looked between the two different paths that forked out of the current path. Lirri could tell that he was angry and frustrated getting lost with a string of curses coming out. Lirri cocked her head as she put her hands around her mouth as she called out.

"Ben!"

The pale boy shot around as his angered expression lightened to one of mild annoyance. Lirri walked over as she smiled up at him. "Are you heading to meditation with the other Padawans and Master Skywalker too?"

He hesitated before rubbing the back of his head. His cheek were a bit red. "I was debating it- yeah." he answered, as Lirri resisted the urge to chuckle at what obviously was Ben covering up his embarrassment.

"You could walk with me?" Lirri offered before adding. "It's a nice day, and would be better to spend some time with another Padawan without needing to deal with business." She knew this sounded more like Ben was doing her a favour, and wouldn't damage his ego compared to saying 'You're lost. I'll help.'

Ben responded as he dropped his hands into his pockets. "Sounds great." he responded, although a bit stiff as Lirri walked beside him down the proper path to the left.

"You know the other way has a gorgeous spot to swim." Lirri began as she smiled. "Sometimes we do bonfires there."

As they walked, Ben continued to steal glances at the short girl walking beside him as they made their way down the path. Ben knew the temper had gotten the best of him and that if Luke had seen him there, he would have scolded Luke about it. That letting his emotions, especially anger, get the best of him when trying to use the Force.

The thought of that irritated him since no one as of late seemed to have faith in Ben. Even some of the other Padawans questioned why he was so late to joining their rankings, as he discovered he had at least three years on most of them. Lirri, however, was an outlier. She rarely participated alongside the Padawans in training, rather helping to run it and seemed to be older than the rest. That could just be the maturity of being Luke's assistant. The question gnawed at him and before Ben knew it he asked.

"Are you a Padawan or a Jedi?"

Lirri nearly tripped as she cocked her head before opening and closing her mouth a few times. It was as if she was looking for an answer. "Neither I think." Lirri stated hesitantly as she continued her train of thought. "I am Force-Sensitive, and Master Skywalker brought me here to become a Jedi but I doubt I will finish. I am not a fan of violent, and I don't believe that in violence you can create peace, just fear."

Ben nodded in a partial understanding as Lirri made some awkward faces as she shrugged and her hands were fiddling with some of the longer strands of hair that went past her chin. Within moments as she bounced back as she jumped around to face him while walking backwards.

"While on the subject, may I know why you started the training so late? Master Skywalker has mentioned you before but most of our Padawans are between 7 and 14. You must be around… 16?" Green eyes connected with his brown ones.

"17 actually." Ben corrected her as he chuckled a bit. "I came late since I was doing some training at home with my mother, Leia." He didn't say it but added that 'they wanted to work on managing my 'temper issues' before sending me to be with other people.' Lirri didn't notice this hesitation in Ben as she smiled.

"It'll be nice to have someone my age to talk socialize with I think. So many younger Padawans only want to speak about lightsabers, and the combat aspects. That or the stories of Luke and the rebellion." She made an annoyed face before continuing. "The Force is so much more than that though. It's all around us."

Lirri began to ramble about the other amazing things about the force as she waved her hands happily around. On occasion, she would look back to make sure that she wouldn't trip.

Ben listened to Lirri as he smiled at her. She seemed interested in Ben and not his family of their history. She barely blinked when he said his mother's name. He was looking past her at some points as he saw the scattering of Padawans in a small clearing where it was surrounded by bushes of beautiful new flowers and trees. The sunlight was casting on the clearing as it made them look far more appeasing place to meditate.

"Lirri, we've arrived." Ben spoke as he tapped her shoulder and pointed behind her.

Turning around, Lirri glanced over at Ben as she smiled. "Thanks. It was nice to walk here with you." Lirri waved at some of the Padawans as she left Ben to go speak with Luke for a moment. Luke had glanced to his nephew before responding to Lirri. Ben headed to find a seat where he would be further away from the other Padawan. He also looked for some shading since he had quite pale and fair skin that he would prefer didn't burn.

As he waited, Ben examined the other students. They sat in rows, with the little groups being closer in some sections as they faced Luke. He could hear about how to manage a lightsaber and making the proper movements. Lirri was still speaking with Luke. She nodded him as Lirri walked towards the back as she sat a few feet away from Ben as she raised her face up to the sky as she closed her eyes and let out a relaxed sigh, her shoulders slumping a bit.

Ben watched as she was embracing the warmth of sunlight on her skin with the largest smile on her tanned skin. Maybe it was the sheer happiness or how the sun reflected, but Ben could swear that she had a soft glow.

His focused was pulled back as Luke called the meditation to begin as he began to give instructions.


	3. Chapter 3

**This has been edited as of December 16, 2017 as a way to add some more details into the story.**

Even with hiding in the shade, Ben enjoyed the warm breeze as his muscles relaxed in the meditation. It was a beautiful day to do this. Master Luke had stopped speaking to the students after they seemed to get close to the state of deep meditation. The sounds of the wind rustled through the leaves, with the calm breaths being the only sounds being the only other noise in the area.

Even with this, Ben felt a churning in his stomach, as Ben let his mind guide him to where it was trying to take him where it wanted him to go. A chill ran down his spine as it crawled through his body as a burning sensation overtook his eyes until he pried them open as the sensation stopped.

Instead of the grassy area where Ben had been sitting and meditating. Instead, Ben was standing in front of a large set of stone stairs with a large chair that could easily fit three people comfortably not touching one another on either side. Ben was glancing around the room as he could hear a distant voice calling to him. Ben turned his head slowly but saw no figures near him, as he turned completely around trying to see any hint of where the voice was coming from.

"Ben," the voice spoke. It was dark, crackly and taunting as Ben stormed around the dark room. Going up and down the stairs, and checking behind the chair. "Beennnn." The voice drawled out more behind him again.

This irritated him as Ben marched around, trying to find a mysterious figure but with no luck. He finally screamed out. "What do you want?!"

In return the voice mimicked him. "What do YOU want?" Ben's eyes twitched, as he narrowed his eyes and climbed up the stairs again. "What do YOU want?" it kept repeating at him, each time getting louder and angrier. This made Ben get frustrated as he pounded his hands against the chair as he screamed at the top of his lungs.

His anger came out as he pounded his fists against the stones until he was drained of energy until he collapsed on his knees. Why was this voice mocking him? This voice was treating him like a child, not a powerful soon to be Jedi. His hands were aching and he felt like he could cry in defeat.

The voice spoke again, although still dark and crackly, it was somehow more of a whisper, as if the man was staying right behind him. "Well? What are some things you crave beyond all else?"

Ben felt his throat dry up as he took a moment to breathe and think. His mind was racing, yet unable to come up with an answer. The stones were quite cold against his knees. The voice seemed to be in his mind as it kept asking him. His mind was whirled in confusion and frustration. Ben needed to find an answer, in hopes it would leave him alone.

"Some peace and quiet!" he shouted with his hands clenched as the noise around him stopped. Ben felt the calmness rush over him as he breathed out in relief. He caught his breath as he turned so he could rest his head against the back of the stone.

Once he opened his eyes, Ben noticed a dark figure wearing a metallic helmet with chrome decorative pieces on it. It was dressed in all black with a cloak rushing behind the man. This man was walking towards him.

"Don't you want something more?" The voice began with a crackle and metallic sound to it that unsettled Ben. "Power? Control? Infamy? Perhaps to satisfy your lusts?" Ben watched it come closer, unable to move in fear as his back straightened against the cold stone tablet.

The man began to walk up the stone steps with only the slightest sounds of clinking boots as he raised his arm. He crawled up the chair as he leaned as far back as possible into the seat as the hand came so close to Ben's cheek. He squeezed his eyes shut as Ben felt the leather hand against his cheek.

"Sssnookkkeee" echoed around the room as Ben could feel light on his eyes. He opened them cautiously to see that he was back in the clearing. His body now cold with sweat. Glancing around, Ben noticed that many of the people had already left from meditation. His uncle Luke was there speaking with some of the Padawans that had hung around.

He stood up as his back crackled. He moved his hands to rub his temples as he walked up the path towards the building. This time much quicker. A good meal and a long night's sleep sounded good to him in this moment although Ben was skeptical he would enjoy either on that night.


	4. Chapter 4

**This was edited on December 16, 2017 and I hope you enjoy the rewrite. I was trying to add more detail.**

Although he tried going to bed quite early, he could not sleep a wink so far. Each time he attempted to do so, terrifying visions would return to him and cause him to wake up even more. Deciding that he was going nuts by staying in his room, he wrapped a cloak around his body and left the building. He went outside and down the path once more. He distracted himself with the bright night sky filled to the brim with stars and the multiple moons.

When Ben arrived at the fork in the road, Ben decided to explore this trail. He recalled that Lirri said it was a place to swim and felt that this would be the ideal place to relax in peace. Ben followed the steps as he soon arrived, but noticed a dark figure sitting on the log. His throat tensed, walking closer quite slowly. He was worried it would be the man but relaxed upon seeing Lirri.

She was leaning over, and rummaging through her bag without looking up towards Ben. He was quiet as he stood behind him before deciding to move and sit beside her.

Ben glanced over as he greeted her quietly as she finally glanced over. Her brain took a moment before she yelped and jumped from the figure beside her that was suddenly there.

"What in the heck Ben!" Lirri breathed out as she held one hand over her heart as the other hand went on Ben's upper arm. "You startled me. When did you get here?" she questioned as she moved her other hand to shut the bag. This made Ben raise a brow but he shook it off.

"I just arrived actually. I couldn't get to sleep." Ben answered as his eyes looked down to the hand staying on his arms. His face heated up as he asked. "What about you?"

"There are these herbs that are great for anxiety and restlessness. They glow in the dark so finding them at night is the easiest." She gave him a small smile and looking up to the night sky.

She took her arm back to cross her arms over her chest while staring up with wide eyes of wonder and a smile. "It's a great night to be out at least."

Ben kept looking at her as he thought about her smile as intoxicating, not realizing that he began to smile along with her. "I still find it amazing to think about how many lives in the galaxy. All going about their business and having their own thoughts and opinions. There are so many planets we've never been too before and perhaps planets that haven't been discovered yet." She spoke softly about this before the two rested in the comfortable silence between the two of them.

He occasionally looked over at Lirri as they stared at the stars. He could see that her sweater wasn't doing the job as she was shivering a bit since the evening was much cooler than the day. He went with his gut reaction as he scooted closer beside Lirri as he wrapped his one arm over her shoulders, the cloak he wore fell around the two of them. Lirri stiffened for just a moment upon Ben's touch before she relaxed against his touch. His heart sped up a bit, but he remained silent. After a few minutes, Lirri rested her head on Ben's shoulder, with her arm wrapping around his waist as the two watched the stars.

They stayed for an hour later as they watched the stars, but his own eyelids were beginning to grow heavy. His head was even heavy as he rested his head against Lirri's. Ben figured it'd be okay to shut his eyes for just a moment, take a moment's rest before heading towards the building again.

Where Ben was now was dark outside with a heavy rain. He wasn't sure how it started raining so heavily, but it made the ground get quite muddy. Ben glanced around as he noticed that his vision was quite different. His face was covered in a mask that impaired some of his vision. Why was he wearing a mask? Ben questioned to himself as he glanced around. There was bodies strewn about on the ground in front of him. The faces and surroundings looked familiar. It came to Ben suddenly that these were a slightly older version of some of the other Padawan's.

Ben glanced behind him as he noticed other figures in dark cloaks behind him.

A grey cloud encircled him before the images around him suddenly changed. It was a purely metal room, with a chair in the centre. On the chair, there was cuffs for the head, hands and feet. The doors to his left opened as a woman was dragged in that was clearly unconscious by the way she was limp in the men's arms. As she was set in the chair, Ben's gut twisted as he recognized Lirri. Bruised and cuts tattered her skin, it looked as if her eye was swollen shut. She looked a bit different as Ben walked closer. Gone was the baby fat from her face, with her hair longer to her shoulders that seemed darker. Her body was shaped as that more of an adult's with a pear shaped body.

Her head shot up as she gasped with her eyes as wide as she possibly could. Lirri's voice shook with fear as she whispered. "You…" She leaned her head back away from Ben's hand as it was instinctively drew closer to her face. A downpour of tears streamed down her face as she began screaming at him. "What happened to Ben? WHAT DID YOU DO TO BEN?!" Her body thrashed as Ben felt his other hand shoot upwards as Lirri's screaming began shallow gasps and noises as her head was awkwardly leaning back now. She wiggled a bit as she was being Force Choked.

Ben shot awake as he fell forward onto the sand gasping. Lirri immediately awoke from the startling movement beside him. She dropped to the ground beside him as she grabbed his hands. "Ben," she began as she saying his name. "Ben, look at me."

Terrified eyes connected with Lirri's green eyes as his breathing slowed down. Her eyes were pure of focus as she got him to count with her, although he barely registered saying the numbers with her.

When he finally calmed down, he pulled her tightly into his arms as he buried his face into her neck. Ben's eyes stung with the urge to cry as he held on for dear life. Lirri was okay.

Lirri hugged back onto him as he whispered to him quietly reassuring statements.

Finally, he let go of Lirri. "Maybe we should head back." His voice was quiet with low energy. Lirri nodded as she stood up and placed her bag over her one shoulder. The walk up the trail was almost an awkward silence. Ben was unsure what to say and just wanted to distract his mind.

"Ben," Lirri softly began to speak, her voice full of concern and worry. "I know it may be tough and we are still new friends, but if you need to talk about your nightmares or want to try something to help you sleep, just tell me." She had made a mental note to keep track of it in case he was drastically changing. "You can trust me not to tell the others and I won't be upset if you wake me for that."

It worried Lirri that he was having the nightmares. She knew it was far from the simple things involving dreams of being chased, no this was the dreams of seeing something horrible like a vision of the future.


	5. Chapter 5

Ben did not understand the sudden increase in Padawans, nor did he enjoy it. In the last two weeks, there had been nearly ten more teens to join the ranks. They annoyed Ben. For they were loud and overconfident, which led to getting in a few disagreements with Ben during some of the literary training sessions over the materials taught. With each passing day, Ben was growing far more irritated as he struggled to keep his cool on a regular day. He was getting the minimal amount of sleep, since his mind was tormented with each vision. His body was exhausted to the point as he nearly passed out a few times during the days.

During the lunchtime, Ben sat against the building with his eyes closed as he avoided lunch with the rest of the Padawans. He was trying to think about why he was here in the first place. Everyone was annoying the living hell out of him as Ben almost wished to be back home with his mother and the quiet house. Although, Ben would admit to be away from his father and the arguments though. Not that his fathers were ever around anyways, since he was gone on many jobs.

Just thinking about Han irritated Ben to no end. The Padawans here and other people glorified his parents. They talked about how romantic the pair was and had Han seem to be this greater person when he was really just a smuggler that happened to charm his mother in a time of strife. Their life experiences created the relationships. A headache was forming as he felt it in the front of his head.

He groaned as a thud interrupted his thoughts. Lirri was sitting beside him as she held out a wrapped sandwich for him. He hesitated before taking the sandwich. Ben had not seen anyone or told anyone he was here, yet Lirri found him. He decided to not question it as Lirri drummed her fingers against her knees. Her eyes stared at her fingers as she spoke.

"Ben you seem distant and exhausted lately. As well as restless in class. I want to ask if you are okay, but clearly you aren't. This last week alone you've fallen asleep three times in lessons." Her eyes glanced over at him before shooting back down. "Why don't you have some chamomile tea tonight with me and I can monitor you."

He looked at the sandwich, as he brought it down to his lap as he looked over at Lirri. His hand went to rest on one of her hands to stop her drumming fingers. "I guess I could. If you are concerned for me." He smiled a bit, as he noticed that she had a flush on her cheeks, but he was sure that he had his own matching blush.

"Why are you so concerned for me?" Ben prodded as Lirri visibly stiffened before her eyes darted around as she stumbled over words, the face.

"I – uh- uhm," Lirri began before breathing out slowly as she waved her hands in front of her to pace herself. "I just care for you is all…" she explained while her cheeks changed to bright red as her hands went back to her knees. Ben tried his best to smother his chuckle as his thumb tenderly rubbed Lirri's hand. The chuckle still came out though as he thought about some reasons why she cared for him.

It was sweet. He gave her hand a reassuring squeeze before he moved it away to start eating the sandwich. After the first bite, he leaned over. "Thank you for the sandwich, by the way."

Lirri let them fall back into a comfortable silence as Ben ate his sandwich.

Ben's sleep that night was terrible as he tossed and turned in his bed. Lirri's words repeated in his head as Ben pushed the sheets away from himself. He hoped that Lirri may be still awake so he didn't wake her and he could take her offer on the chamomile tea. He decided it was worth the shot as he walked barefoot down the hall, ignoring the slight chill from the night time. Ben immediately noticed the door for the medical room was propped open with the light on. Lirri sat inside as she was reading a book. Her hair pushed back by a hair band. Ben watched for a moment before he knocked.

Lirri glanced over to him as Lirri tilted her head and set her book down. "Are you okay, Ben?" Lirri asked carefully as she eyed him up and down.

He nodded a bit as he awkwardly held his hands to the side as he walked in. "I was hoping I could take you up on the offer of that tea?" Ben's tone was curious, giving her room to say no if needed.

She immediately nodded as Lirri jumped out of her chair, and went past Ben.

"Yeah, I'll just go get the tea made." Lirri smoothed her shirt out before she walked out of the room.

After a few minutes, Ben decided to venture to the kitchen so he did not have to be bored in the medical room himself. Ben watched as she was rustling to get the tea made. She bent over to the lower cupboard to grab the tea leaves. Lirri then leaned up to try and grab one of the teapots that were on the top shelf of the cupboard. Off to the far corner was a stepstool, but Lirri seemed to ignore it. Her fingers were grazing the edge of the shelf as Ben stepped in. In a few strides, Ben leaned over Lirri as his fingers carefully wrapped around the teapot down onto the counter beside Lirri. She was pressed between Ben and the counter now as he stared down at her.

Lirri stuck her tongue out as she was trying to grab the teapot without the stupid stool. She disliked being short. A warm body pressed against her back as fingers wrapped around the teapot handle and set down beside her. She turned as best as she could without pressing too much against the other body. Lirri eyes were directly in contact with the shirtless torso of Ben. Her back was firmly against the counter as her cheeks were on fire just from thinking of the shirtless man in front of her. Ben's head hovered over hers as Lirri looked up to connect with his eyes.

His brown eyes were easy to get lost in as if they held great stories behind them. Even with the dark circles and heavy bags under Ben's eyes. Lirri barely thought as her hand went to gently run along Ben's jawline as if she was afraid of breaking him. Her eyes closed for a moment before lifting herself on her toes. On instinct, Lirri pressed her lips against Ben's. The lips were considerably softer than Lirri could have predicted. She pulled away almost immediately in shock as she began to ramble.

"I'm so sorry, Ben. I shouldn't have done that-" Lirri rambled as she ducked under Ben's arm as he stayed still. She ran a hand through her hair, cursing as she walked to the exit. Lirri wanted to get away but was stopped with arms encircled her own body as it turned her around so she faced him. Her body froze as she kept her eyes away from Ben's.

"Lirri," Ben commanded with a slightly deeper voice. "Look up at him."

Lirri barely glanced up to see his eyes as Ben kissed her this time. Her hands rested against his chest carefully. His kiss was demanding compared to the peck of a kiss she had given to him. She melted in his touch instantly, tilting her head and responding to his actions with a sense of eagerness.

Large hands grasped at Lirri's body, one on her waist and one on her hip as she was pulled firmly against his body. Lirri's mind spun from the kiss as she finally pulled away when the need to oxygen became apparent. Her eyes were closed as she caught her breath again. The kettle was whistling beside them as she looked up to Ben. He pressed her lips softly against hers again as she breathed out.

"So, chamomile tea?"

Hands grasped at Lirri's body, moving to grasps at her waist and hip while pulling her tinier body firmly against his own. Her mind was spinning in the kiss as her need for oxygen began to consume Lirri as she pulled away. Panting, she stared at Ben with a smile on Lirri's face as Ben pressed his lips on hers again as Lirri breathed out. "So, chamomile tea?"


	6. Chapter 6

**This has been edited December 16, 2017. I hope to have this edited completely by the end of the week.**

Ben and Lirri sat in the medical room with Ben sitting on the bed, while Lirri sat on the nearby desk. Ben was quite comfortable in the atmosphere as Lirri stared down into her cup as she swirled the golden liquid. She focused on it instead of the boy nearby although thoughts of Ben continued to run through her mind. The way his eyes twinkled and drew her in, the way his lips moved when he spoke, how her name sounded on his lips and how his lips felt against hers. The sensation of his hands grabbing onto her. She suppressed a sigh as Lirri closed her eyes for a moment as she leaned her head back against the wall. Her mind was running around trying to think of any way for her to not make this more awkward for either party involved.

The flush stayed on her cheeks, and continued down her chest had been there nearly an hour. She was clicking her tongue as she tried thinking of strategy. Although her heart yearned to just continue this affection and head towards intimacy, that Lirri knew it was wrong. She was considered a superior to him as the helper of Luke. It was a power difference that was unfair to Ben. Even the older traditions declared that anyone in the Jedi lifestyle were not supposed to be in relationships since it caused a distraction. Sure, she was fine not being an official Jedi but Ben wanted to. She couldn't take away that dream. Master Luke was far more accepting than the previous Jedi, but who knew when it came towards his own nephew.

Distracted by her own thoughts, Lirri was quite unaware of Ben getting closer to her until there was a slight tug on her hair as Ben was twirling her hair gently around his finger. Ben's eyes were half lidded as he glanced at her lips before he pressed his lips against hers again.

Lirri kissed him back as the hand that had been playing with her hand, moved towards the back of her head as he wove his fingers in and grasped it gently. His other hand slid under the back of Lirri's shirt that rested on the small of her back. Lirri's hands held onto her cup before she pulled herself away with a sigh. Ben's forehead pressed against hers as he tried keeping eye contact between them. Lirri set her cup to the side as Ben asked her softly.

"What's bothering you?" Ben had questioned as Lirri sighed again, her eyes looking to the left as she avoided his big brown eyes.

"Ben, should we be doing this?" Lirri questioned quietly as she cupped his cheek before looking him straight in the eyes. "I don't want to just be a one night stand," Lirri began before she continued. "I also don't want you to get in trouble for being with me. I'm Master Skywalker's apprentice and I have a position above you… kind of."

Lirri quietly explained as she looked him in the eye. Ben could see the concern as he pulled her into a hug and nuzzled the side of head with his own. Lirri wrapped her arms around Ben's torso, leaving little space between them as they continued their embrace with only the sounds of their breathing to disturb the silence. Lirri was emotionally exhausted but she wasn't sure why the sudden urge to sleep overtook her as she fell asleep in Ben's arms.

Ben's body relaxed when he felt Lirri slump onto his torso with an even breathing as he tucked an arm under her legs as he scooped the small girl in his arms as he laid Lirri on the bed nearby. He had her on one side as he made sure the door was shut behind them before Ben laid beside Lirri. Sleeping over her thoughts would be a smart way to get all her thoughts figured out.

He was slightly proud with himself by being able to get Lirri to sleep using the force. Master Luke had been trying to teach the Padawans this, but up until this point no one had been successful. He could hear Lirri mumble in her sleep as she was shifting in her sleep towards Ben's warm body beside her.

Ben wrapped his arm around Lirri, moving her body so her head rested on his chest below his neck as he pulled the blankets over the pair. He tried to relax his mind as he shut his eyes so he could sleep. It came faster than was predicted based on his past history.

This time Ben was aware this wasn't real life, more like a dream or vision. He was in an unfamiliar location. He was in a forest that was near a large lake, with a castle like building. The building was completely in rubble and smoking. His figure was walking out with a woman he did not recognize in his arms. She was unconscious but Ben could feel some sense of power from her. The area in front of him was full of StormTroopers. They were listening to a silver clad StormTrooper captain. She was holding a woman by her hair, arms tied behind her back and trying to not sob. It was the same mature Lirri figure, this time though with a healthy glow.

A few StormTroopers came towards Ben as they took the woman from his arms and onto the nearby ship. He walked over to the StormTrooper General and raised his arm up as Lirri's faces rose in sync with the movements. Green eyes stared up at him. They were filled with heartbreak and pain as tears started falling down her cheeks. "Just end it already," she hissed out in anger to Ben.

His voice spoke out for him, mechanical and wheezy. "Why would I do that? We have plans for you." he did not want this voice coming out yet it continued. "Captain, put her in a room with guards outside. This time do NOT let anyone speak with her. Muzzle her if you must."

Chills went down his spine as Ben turned in the vision and the scene changed. This was back on the island. Where the Padawans trained sometimes. It was near a path down towards the beach. Ben was standing at the edge of the cliff. It was a surreal moment as Ben heard the figure away from him screaming out in agony as Lirri was taking a running jump off the cliff, after what seemed to be a figure falling lifelessly towards the lake. Ben's body moved as the Ben watching followed behind as he pushed through the trees and bushes to the path towards the water.

The hard noises of running caught his attention on the path as he noticed Master Skywalker running. Ben focused back as he was pulled over to his body's place. He could see that at the beach Lirri was hovering over the limp figure. Her head was bleeding, but she was ignoring the blood trailing down her head as she was focusing on the chest compressions.

"Come on Igni." she was muttering. Ben felt like the world was falling into slow motion as he watched Lirri slipping as she continued the compressions even as her movements were getting sloppier. She was beginning to grow week as Ben noticed she fell and did not move again.

He seemed to have control of his body once more as he ran over to the pair as he cried out her name. and didn't move again.

His vision changed again as Ben popped his eyes open as he gasped. He looked toward the room. It was the medical room that he had been in before as Ben remembered the previous night. Lirri was still laying on him, curled up with her head nuzzled in the crook of his neck. He glanced to the clock in the room, realizing that he had slept quite longer than usual. Deciding there was still time, but Ben squeezed her closer as he stared at the ceiling. He was hoping when he tried sleeping later that they would be more peaceful.

When Ben woke again, it was lighter in the room and Lirri was trying to squirm off of the bed. She smiled at him, as she pressed her lips against his forehead. "I've got to start breakfast." Lirri explained as Ben noded. He figured it was time to get ready for the day.


	7. Chapter 7

**This was edited on December 16, 2017. I hope you enjoy it.**

Ever since that day, Ben was happily sneaking around the lessons and other Padawans to spend time with Lirri. He enjoyed the feeling she gave him. So whether it was by pulling Lirri into a bush to kiss, sneaking out in the evening from the building to curl up and watch the night sky. He even was okay just spending time with Lirri by doing the dishes with her. Lirri made him feel better when she was around.

So it was late evening when Ben had peeked into the kitchen. Lirri was in the kitchen, drying a dish in her hand as she conversed with one of the newer Padawans. He had been there only been there for a few days, so it was natural for Lirri to be asking questions. Both seemed quite engaged in the conversation as Ben looked in and tried to focus so he could hear the conversation better. He was unable to, but he was able to read the body language as Lirri was starting to become uncomfortable and uninterested in it. The Padawan was not getting the hint as he moved closer. Ben watched as Lirri gave him a fake smile, saying an excuse a bit louder. Ben could hear it, as Lirri began to walk out of the room.

Ben moved away from his hiding spot, preparing himself to look like he was walking down the hall coincidentally. He counted down his estimate, but when Lirri did not exit, he went to the door to see Lirri. She was shoving the Padawan away with an unimpressed look. The Padawan stormed away, pushing past Ben.

He was angered as he thought about following the Padawan,

Ben peered in to see the process of Lirri shoving the Padawan away before storming out. Anger consumed him as the thought of why Lirri was pushing the Padawan away and that he was unable to help her. He turned and stormed away before Lirri could see him.

He did not want Lirri to see him this angry, and wanted to get it out of his system. The other Padawans were avoiding him as he walked through the hall. Ben's body guided him to the training area and let all of his anger burst out of his system.

-

Lirri went searching for Ben after she had finished her chores. She was having an awful day. She found him as Ben was panting heavily. Ben was punching a hanging sack with a lot of energy behind it. The punching bag was about half a foot from the wall so every time Ben hit it, it would thud against the wall and bounce back at him. He was drenched in sweat, and his body was in need for a break, yet Ben continued.

Lirri was concerned for him as she slowly walked over towards him. "Hey Ben." She called out quietly with some nervousness behind it. He kept continuing it without any sign of stopping as Lirri's hand rested on his shoulder while speaking his name again.

The next moments happened in a blur as Lirri's arm was grabbed a she was spun around and her back was slammed against the wall as it pushed the air out of her lungs. Lirri kept her eyes squeezed shut as she waited for a reaction.

Nothing happened as she opened an eye to see Ben holding her arm against the wall with a confused expression on his face. The pair looked at each other in awkward silence with mere inches from each other as a way to process what happened.

Finally Lirri whispered out. "Feeling better?"

Ben gave a half nod as he stared down at her. Eyes going between looking at her lips and eyes. Lirri was less concerned with why he was angry, but that more simply he was now much calmer. Ben gave her a slow nod again as Lirri smiled at him. It seemed that Ben was distracted by something else on his mind which was quite obvious. Taking the leap, Lirri leaned up on her toes so she could just reached his lips.

The sensation of Ben's lips were familiar against hers as Ben's grip on her arm loosened a bit as he took control of the kiss, tilting his head to deepen the kiss. Lirri could tell that Ben was using this to get the last of his frustrations out as she went along with it. Her free hand moved onto Ben's neck before heading into his dark hair. She loved the soft feeling of his hair and how grounding it was to hold onto.

Ben let go of her hand as she moved it to rub his bicep. His hands moved to rest on her hip and thigh. Ben pushed her up the wall as the back of her shirt would bunch up. She gasped from her warm skin grazing the cold stone of the wall. Ben slid his tongue into her mouth, tracing over hers and grazing her teeth. His body was pressed firmly against Lirri's as she wrapped her legs around his waist with a bit of help from Ben. Ben took a breath before he roughly pressed his lips against hers as he trailed the kisses from her jaw, to her ear lobe as he nipped it and tugged lightly on it with his teeth.

A whined escaped Lirri's mouth, that became more of a gasp as his lips trailed down her throat and began sucking against her pulsepoint. She squirmed from the sensation, only for Ben to press his hips more firmly against hers. Ben was moving down slowly to nip and suck on different places as his hands began to go under her shirt.

Nearby voices could be heard as the two froze, as they stared at each other before helping Lirri's legs go back down, as he helped her balance herself before stepping sideways a bit. Ben was staring down as he caught their breath. Although they still hadn't thoroughly discussed it, Lirri was quite aware of the need they both had for secrecy. They were both secretly happy with this relationship, but it hurt her a bit that she couldn't show everyone how happy she was with Ben.

-

They were training again with the Lightsabers. They had different levels of fighting. Where the first class used sticks only, the second could touch the lightsabers but not combat. The third class could do slow combat, instructed by Luke and the final class was allowed to duel under great supervision. This prevented the amount of limbs lost and injuries Lirri fixed. Ben had to sit with the other Padawans, a few of the quiet ones were near him thankfully. Lirri was on the sideline, so she could inspect and manage injuries so far. There had been a few scrapes, bruises and some minor lightsaber burns from getting too close to the skin. Beads of sweats were starting to trickle down as she kept healing the scrapes, burns and more serious bruises. There was at least 10 feet between the Padawans and the fighting circle as the Padawan spanned the edges. They were all wearing padding to help as well that made him feel uncomfortable and sweaty.

Ben was grateful to be the next to go, wanting to release more pent up frustration. The dreams were becoming worse, as the figure deemed to be Snoke was demanding Ben make a choice to join him. Snoke promised him ultimate power and fame. Ben would admit that he was considering it, but wanted to discuss this over with Lirri. He was hoping she would join him on this journey and leave the Padawans. If this man could train them privately, they could be great.

"Ben!" a voice rang out as he was pulled from his thoughts, as he looked over to Master Luke before nodding. He entered into the centre of the ring as he waved his hand and a lightsaber came to him. It was a temporary one, since he knew he would eventually make his own lightsaber or even receiving his Uncle's. It seemed to be a family tradition. As he stood in wait, a Gungan named Telera came up to Ben. His long floppy ears were tied back to his face as he smiled at Ben. The Naboo native was much taller than Ben, mostly height in his legs.

They both stood on the center mat and turned on their lightsabers. Ben thrusted his arm to the side completely straight as he spread his feet to improve his balance and giving him a sturdy footing. Telera decided to take the offensive position as he immediately swung from his left, trying to hit Ben near the chest. Ben deflected it and with the lightsabers pushed Telera away from him. He spun the lightsaber in his hand before stepping forward and swooping under with the lightsaber. It was blocked by Telera's again as Ben gritted his teeth.

This fight continued with blows and deflections that were not near full speed, since it was only considered practice. Ben could feel all the eyes on him, especially Master Luke and Lirri's. Ben wanted to impress the both of them, as he pushed forward. Telera had gotten some distance between the pair as Ben stormed forward taking the offense position.

Clouds encircled him as the scene around him changed. The mats were impossible to see with dark clouds, and the sky was suddenly dark as night. Telera was gone, in his place was a blur heading closer to him. The figure was dressed in all black with their cloaked hood covering their face. The figure had a red lightsaber as they swung it at Ben.

Ben held his lightsaber in an attempt to defend himself. Ben had no idea what was happening as he continued to defend himself before seeing an opening. He swung his lightsaber at the handle, as it struck it and pushed the lightsaber out of his assailant's hands.

"Weak." the voice spoke as Ben's next attack was deflected using the force as he was pushed back. The anger poured through him as he glared to the figure. "You don't deserve to have the Skywalker legacy." Ben's nostrils flared as he clung to the lightsaber in both hands. How dare this man? Ben knew he was the strongest Padawan. He was going to hold his family name with pride.

"Yessss, let your anger flow." An echoed voice spoke out through the clouds, that Ben had recognized as Snoke's voice.

Lirri and Luke were enjoying the afternoon as they watched the spars. The Padawans were improving greatly with each day. Soon, they knew they would be moving up to a greater level. Although Lirri was planning a nap after this, since she was using a lot of focus to heal, something she was still working on. Ben and Telera were sparring each other, and was proving interesting. Both males were decent at fightings so it kept everyone on their toes.

Ben's demeanour suddenly changed as the feeling in the air shifted around them. Ben charged Telera and swinging quite viciously. Telera screamed as Ben twisted and moved his lightsaber quiet fluidly. He was using a new style as he was attacking Telera. The poor boy was trying to defend himself while moving away to no luck. The other students fled to the other side of the circle as Luke and Lirri both sprang up.

Ben was speaking words that were nothing but garbled nonsense. Lirri could see the murderous glint in his eyes as she tried to think on what to do. Ben let out another cry of anger as he swung his lightsaber. Telera was starting to stumble and was overwhelmed by fear. He couldn't keep up the movement with his own lightsaber. Each hit drew the lightsabers closer and closer to Telera's skin.

Something was wrong with Ben and she needed to separate the two. Running onto the mats, Lirri began screaming at Ben to get his attention.

"BEN!" she screamed. "BEN LOOK HERE." Ben continued to move towards Telera as she tried to figure out what to do. She didn't want to be violent, it went against what she preferred. But Ben was overtaken by something and could seriously injured Telera. Luke was guarding the other Padawans, as Lirri saw that the lightsaber was in his non dominant hand, and further from her as Telera was coming towards her and the rest of the Padawan's.

Lirri charged forward as she dug her shoulder and elbow into his chest as a way to knock him off balance. The pair tumbled to the ground as the she felt the searing pain of the lightsaber barely grazing her thigh. Lirri couldn't hold back the blood curdling scream from the pain as tears were welling up in her eyes. Her back was shoved on the ground. Her green eyes connected with Ben's as all she could see was dark pool of anger that was clouding up his normal colour. This was something that was affecting Ben deep to his core.

Lirri could see the lightsaber was off to the side as Ben's hands momentarily went to her throat, when the clouds suddenly left his eyes.

"What?" Ben muttered as his eyes rolled back in his head as he collapsed onto her.

Lirri couldn't focus on any due to the sheer pain from her leg. She was sobbing and made the mistake of glancing down at it. There was an indent of the burn mark that was red and bleeding when she had been moving. Someone was carrying her to the room. It felt like an eternity as Lirri faded in and out of reality. When she could get a grasp on the situation, Lirri could see Luke was cleaning the wound and it hurt far less. Lirri knew that Luke had healed it to be less severe. She was seated on a chair with her leg being propped up on a different chair.

Glancing back, Lirri could see Ben who was still unconscious, completely still from the neck down and was mumbling all sorts of things under his breath as his head continued to go back and forth.

Luke's face was full of worry, but he was focused on the task of hand as he tried to not look too much over at his nephew, Ben. It was an uncomfortable and suffocating silence as Lirri listened to any noises of Luke tending to her leg. She was trying to go through and figure out how to break the silence, but she was also afraid of the conversation at hand.

Master Luke could sense this from just knowing the girl well as he spoke first. "Something troubling you?" he questioned as Lirri nodded. Her head hurt from the crying and dizzy from the loss of blood before focusing.

"Ben isn't well. He-" Lirri started as she sucked in a deep breath. She had wanted to keep this all between Ben and her but clearly fate had other plans. She buried her face in her hands as she spoke. "Ben hasn't been sleeping well, and his physical health has been worsening. Ben's haunted by something in his mind."

Guilt was pouring through Lirri having to confess that she hid something from her Master, and then the guilt of breaking her confidentiality with Ben. So much had happened since she spoke it.

"Perhaps, but right now Lirri don't focus on that." Luke began as he started to wrap the wound. The cold metal of his hand causing shivers. "Please care for yourself first. Then, together, we can help Ben."

She listened to him. "I'm not going to be able to rest if I am worried about him Master. He needs us more than ever." she argued back.

There was silence for a brief moment as Ben's head snapped to the right again. Lirri watched from the corner of her eye as he began to speak again.

Due to the silence, the pair could hear it quite clearly."Snookkeeeeee".

Lirri saw Luke visibly tense before finishing up the wrapping on her leg.

He paused before Luke spoke. "If you would like to help Lirri, you could do one thing for me." He stood up as he looked down to her. "Watch Ben while I looked into something important."

"Okay." Lirri responded as she shifted the chairs so she could watch Ben better. Her eyes were watery as she stared at Ben's figure in the bed. She hoped that he'd wake up soon.


	8. Chapter 8

**This was edited on December 16, 2017**

When Ben finally awoke, it was slow. His head felt like it was full of fog, her throat was scratchy and his vision blurry. He made himself focus on the ceiling until it improved a bit. Sitting up slowly, Ben coughed a few times as he allowed his brain to process what had happened. Last time he had remembered, he was about to practice dueling with Telera and now was in the medical room. This confused him more. He felt no stiffness or aches in his body other than his throat.

Across from him was Lirri curled up across two chairs. She was sleeping with a cold cup of tea sitting on the floor beside her. He could see around the lip of the cup where the steam reformed into droplets of water.

He watched her as Ben eyed her entire figure before stopping at the fact that she was in small shorts where a blush rose to his cheek before he saw underneath it was bandages. They were no long white, but rather had a reddish hue that was contrasting to her tanned skin, although it looked ashy in colour. A flash of Lirri's face screaming in pain showed up in his mind as he gulped. Was he to blame for this. The sunken feeling in his gut made him believe so. He pushed up as Ben moved carefully towards Lirri, not wanting to wake her up by the noise. Ben kneeled beside her as he brushed the hair from her face, as his fingers grazed over her cheek.

Lirri was squished and uncomfortable looking on the chairs as Ben decided to move her and lay her on the bed. He had just gotten her in his arms as the door swung open. Luke came in, with both hands carrying a tray full of food. The two made eye contact as Ben then continued to lift Lirri up and carry her to the bed, before pulling the blankets up over her. Ben's hand brushed Lirri's hair before he turned to Luke.

There was an uncomfortable silence as Ben mumbled while looking down. "I don't know what happened exactly."

Luke nodded as he gestured to the two chairs, moving them to be better for a conversation.

"Can you tell me anything you can remember or anything that could explain what exactly happened today?" Luke questioned as he watched Ben slumped in his chair as he stared at his folded hands.

"I've been having a lot of nightmares, and visions as of late." His tone was quiet, as Ben continued. "I remember starting to fight, and then the vision happened again. A dark figure attacked me. Saying I was weak and not honouring the Skywalker legacy. I know I'm one of the most powerful people here!" Ben exclaimed, as he could feel the hostility boiling inside of him. He saw that Luke noticed this as Ben took a deep breath to calm himself down.

"Ben, being a Skywalker doesn't matter. As long as you're true to yourself, we will be proud of your accomplishments. Even if it doesn't seem like that right now." Luke's smile widened a bit as he continued. "Power is not everything life is about Ben. It all depends on how you can use it. Great power is worthless when you use it like a fool."

Luke gave Ben some time to process his words as Luke finally glanced over to Lirri and then leaned forward to Ben. "While we are chatting, is there anything else you would like to tell me?" His words were soft as Ben stiffened as he immediately shook his head. It wasn't the time to tell his uncle about his relationship.

"If anything comes to mind, please let me know. You could use the rest." Luke stood up as he went through and found a small bottle in the cupboard. "Training won't begin for a few hours, but today you should relax and rest. You can take one of these and it should allow you to sleep without dreams."

Ben glanced over at his Uncle, as he finally asked. "How bad is the injury Lirri has?" his voice was full of guilt and concern.

Luke leaned over and rested his left hand on Ben's shoulder before patting him. "It's much better now. I healed it to a more manageable level but wanted to give her time to rest. Lirri will be able to tend to it as she wishes."

With a reassuring squeeze, Luke added. "These things happen, everyone will keep their limbs and we understand there was no malice behind it." Luke turned and left Ben to ponder his words. "The other Padawans may be concerned but they'll realize in time that no one was the enemy here."

Ben chose to not take the pill as he left the room to shower and clean up before he returned to the medic room. Although they weren't Lirri's, Ben did bring her a change of clothes for her to change into. Ben sat them near the tray of food as he noticed that Lirri was awake, and shuffling around, hopping on one foot to collect different things.

He figured it was to tend the wound. She was struggling to stay balanced as she was reaching for a high shelf. Ben took a deep breath as he called out to her.

"Lirri, sit down and tell me what you need exactly." he grabbed the bandages off the shelf before ushering Lirri back to the bed. Lirri tried to protest before she just silently agreed and hopped over to rest on the bed.

"I need the green bottle from the next cupboard on the second shelf." Lirri directed first, "As well as gauze and a bowl." Ben was moving around to collect the supplies as he then sat awkwardly beside Lirri. He was afraid of being around her, knowing that he hurt her.

Lirri began to unwrap the bandages as Ben couldn't help but stare in horror in the wound as he gulped. She remained as calm as she could while only wincing from the pain.

Lirri's hands were shaking as she cleaned the room before he saw her concentrating on the wound as it healed a bit more before she starting wrapping it. Ben kept himself occupied as he fiddled with his clothes, tugging and twisting the hem of his shirt. By distracting himself, he could process his emotions.

He zoned out while doing this so much that Lirri had finished tending to her wound as she then carefully crawled towards Ben on the bed. She sat in front of him and waited only for Ben to not notice her. Lirri moved her hands to grabbed onto Ben's as she pulled them into her lap.

Ben looked up to her eyes as Lirri squeezed his hands. She leaned up and let her face hover in front of his. It was a move to let Ben know that she still trusted him, and allowed Ben to decide how he wanted to move forward.

Ben had hesitated as he finally leaned forward and pressed his own lips against hers. Hands carefully cradled her chin, as if he was afraid to break her. This honestly surprised Ben that she would still be accepting of him, but it also relieved him.

That even after this screw up, Lirri was still accepting him warmly. That Lirri could forgive him. The guilt left him as he showed her as much as he could how happy he was about this in the kiss until he pulled away with the need for air. He kept his hands on Lirri's chin as he finally asked.

"Aren't you mad at me?" Ben questioned, before looking down at Lirri's thigh. "For hurting you?"

Lirri looked at him with confusion before she glanced at Ben's face. "You weren't yourself then Ben. Your eyes were clouded over and I cannot see you intentionally hurting me."

"Ben.. I, I lo- care for you and understand." she responded as his heart starting racing. He knew what she was going to say as his expression turned to an ear to ear grin. Ben leaned overa nd kissed her again with his hand running through her hair. Lirri pressed her own hands against Ben's chest, fingers dug into the shirt. Ben's hands moved to Lirri's back and hip.

Ben leaned forward as Lirri laid on the bed with Ben hovering over her, keeping an awareness of avoiding Lirri's injury.

The kiss started quite quickly that was one full of tender love, to passion as hands started clinging to each other's bare skin desperately as an underlying need was clear from both parties. Ben's hands were pushing Lirri's shirt up her skin as Lirri was kissing Ben's jaw, nipping at the smooth skin. His cool fingers trailed up her skin as Lirri's back curved towards him. Her fingers were tugging at his shirt.

The two separated only to remove their shirts as Ben pressed his forehead against Lirri's own. They hadn't passed this milestone, so they were both slightly embarrassed.

Lirri made the next move, asking the important question. "Ben, do you want to continue? We can stop anytime." Ben paused for a moment to think as he smiled and whispered.

"Yes." Ben whispered as he kissed her jawline and descended down her neck as a smile on the lips as they shared an intimate moment together.


	9. Chapter 9

**Edited on May 13, 2018**

During times like this, Ben was thankful for the moments he could truly relax. Instead of focusing on his training or the offer that was given to him. Snoke was giving him something that was so tempting. After his dream, Ben barely slept since he was focused on deciding if they were dreams or visions. Rather than thinking of all of this, Ben focused on the sensations that he felt in the current time.

Short fingers were running through his hair, gently weaving through it as his scalp was massaged. It was pleasant as he let out a soft sigh, leaning more into the hand. Lirri was with him and they were having a private moment in a secluded section of the forest. Ben feigned a headache from the previous incident so he could get away for just a bit. Lirri chose to skip the lesson, happy to spend time with Ben. Where they were now was a place that they could get away from the chaos of the Padawans and everything troubling him.

Initially, Ben had gone to the woods by himself to get away but Lirri had found him less than a hour later. She didn't bother questioning him, but rather relaxing beside him as they laid in the grass. Her body was curled up around Ben's with her outer robe being a makeshift pillow for Ben.

With this calming state, Ben could feel his body nodding off into small naps as his mind was happily hazy without a strong thought taking focus. Don't ask him for any information like date or time since he would be unable to give an answer. At most, his answer was day time since he was able to see some of the streams of light coming through the leaves and branches.

Ben rubbed his hand up and down on Lirri's shoulder blade as she curled her body closer to Ben. He could feel the hand stopping its movements as a confused and sleepy moan came out of her lips. She must have nodded off at some point, using Ben's chest as a pillow.

"What's up Ben?" Lirri asked after a few moments, her voice a bit husky.

"Nothing," Ben began, his voice pleased as he shrugged a bit. Lirri squirmed herself up so that her head was resting on his shoulder as her other hand began roaming gently up and down his chest. It was an innocent gesture but felt nice. "I'm just... content here with you."

From where Ben's head was, he could see Lirri's head from the corner of his eye where she had a sleepy smile on his face. Lirri seeing his eye contact, leaned up to kiss Ben on the cheek.

As she was leaning up and off of his shoulder, Ben adjusted the pair so both were laying on their side with his arm under Lirri's head as he stared happily into her eyes. With her, his stresses were barely a whisper in the back of his mind. In Ben's opinion, Lirri was the innocence of the world, reminding him of the choices he had to choose and how these choices could affect Lirri.

Deciding it was something to do later, Ben pushed it back and focused on her again with the grass tickling their skin. Lirri's hand rubbed his side tenderly, giving him the feeling of comfort and safety. His eyes roamed down Lirri's body, taking it in as he focused on the slight lump of bandages under her pants around her thigh. She had told him many times already to not be guilty, since he wasn't in the right mind at the time but Ben continued to feel his guilt.

Lirri seemed to feel this tension, perhaps he had it written on his face as she shifted closer with face resting against his neck as her lips barely pressed against his skin. The soft breaths tickled his neck, causing Ben to chuckle and hold Lirri closer.

Content, Ben closed his eyes and nodded off once more.

A few days later, the Padawans were training and Ben sat with Lirri. The other Padawans were still hesitant to be around Ben so Lirri took him away to catch Ben on the other training he had missed. Ben was competent in fighting so it wasn't a shame if he missed today's lesson.

The sat across from one another with their legs crossed and staring into each other's eyes with great concentration. Ben started prodding into Lirri's mind. It was almost a dual lesson with Ben learning how to explore and prod into someone else's mind whereas Lirri was was learning how to resist.

During the first stage of training, Lirri gave almost no resistance to Ben as he informed her what he saw in her mind even though that she was aware of what she was seeing.

"It's a summery day and you are relaxing on the edge of a beach that simply drops instead of slowly gets deeper. Your feet are moving in the water and you feel a bit cool." Ben began as Lirri nodded.

Lirri began to resist as Ben felt the pressure as the vision began to slip, going back to darkness. He pushed forward as Ben didn't realize his head moved too. When he was clear again, he started speaking.

"You're slowly entering into the water, holding onto the ground as you let out giggles to adjust yourself to the temperature. Your giggles are adorable by the way. " Ben grinned before thinking. "You are enjoying the water but it is far colder than you expected."

Lirri nodded once more as she leaned forward a bit, pushing him out of his mind. Ben pushed back, determined as he suddenly saw the flash of two adults. They were above him and his whole body filled with fear. Immediately Lirri shut him out as Ben pushed back. The wave of stress hit him as Lirri spoke.

"That's enough for today, I think." Lirri spoke as she touched his knee. Although, Lirri was playing it cool Ben could see she was tense. Ben relaxed his posture as he grabbed his hand and tilted his head slightly.

Changing the subject, Ben looked at her. "Did I do okay?"

Lirri smiled at him as she grabbed his other hand and pulled both into her lap with a reassuring squeeze. "You have done fantastic, Ben." Looking up at him, Lirri added. "You are probably a few days ahead of other Padawans. You could be great at this with more practice. Honestly, it was a struggle to keep you out."

Ben let out a small sigh of relief, as he realized he had been holding his breath. Standing up, Ben pulled Lirri up using the fact they were already entwined as he pulled her into a tight hug. His mouth was near her ear as he chuckled. "Maybe you could give me some more… private lessons?"

Lirri bursted into laughter from the innuendo as she buried her face into Ben's shoulder. She was hiding her flushed cheeks from Ben before resting her cheek on his shoulder.

"Perhaps," Lirri began before she sighed heavily and pulled away to look up at him. Her hands went onto his cheeks. "Although, we may need to put this all on the backburner for the next while." Making a face, she continued. "Master Skywalker needs me to do a mission for him soon. It could be a few days or a couple weeks. No Padawans to come with me."

Ben began to frown as he pulled away with Lirri's hands falling.

"What? Why?" Ben clenched his fists as he questioned her. His emotions were quickly soaring as Ben did his best to suppress it.

Lirri waited for him to take a moment for some breaths before she answered him. "From what I guess, a supply run. That or pick up for new recruits. Simply stuff." Ben unclenched his hands as he turned and walked away.

Lirri knew he was upset, but she was thrown off by how much he had been overreacting in this moment. Rolling her eyes, Lirri ran after him, cringing from the pain in her leg.

Calling out to Ben, Lirri tried to grabbed onto his arm as her foot caught onto the root of a tree as she toppled over, falling onto Ben's back as the pair fell to the ground with a thud.

Lirri was laying on Ben's back as she let out a groan.

"Sorry." Lirri mumbled as she moved to sit beside Ben, stretching out her leg straight beside as she looked to him. "I just want to understand why you're so mad Ben. It wouldn't be long until I'm back. It comes with my position."

Ben sat up so he could look at Lirri as she noticed his red eyes. "Things are going so perfectly for us. I want you to stay with me. Too many times when things go right do people suddenly leave me."

"Ben," Lirri spoke as she placed a hand onto his shoulder. "Just know I'll always come back."


	10. Chapter 10

**This chapter was edited on May 13, 2018**

Although Ben had planned on talking to Lirri about it, he rushed to accept Snoke's offer only minutes after he separated from Lirri. Even though she tried to assure him things would be fine, Ben disagreed. With the unlimited power, Ben could keep things the way he desired. Not to mention it would give him the capability to prove his worth as a Skywalker. There was a lot of expectations to live up to.

After all, his grandfather Anakin, was around his age and was married to Padme, who was a Senator. His Uncle Luke had become a Jedi, fighting against the Dark Side, alongside his parents. Although Ben knew that the 'Good Side' was a very loose concept since they had done their share of terrible things proving the world wasn't black and white. People loved to make it that way though.

When he accepted the offer, Ben was unaware that it came with a catch. Ben had to prove to Snoke that he was willing to do whatever it took. After hearing the task, Ben was shuddering and full of worry. How could he possibly complete this? Ben was told that he needed to 'dispose of a Padawan' for Snoke and become a murderer. It was quite busy at the temple so Ben knew it'd be quite the feat on this property. Not even getting into the way he'd be changed to the core from just this, Ben was stressed out. 

As Ben was trying to wrap his mind around the concept, a quiet knocking came from his door. Sitting up, Ben looked around as he tried to see if this was real or another thing in his mind. When the soft knocking was heard again, Ben walked over to the door and opened it with caution.

Outside was a girl that he recognized from his visions. She was the unconscious girl that Lirri had dragged out of her the water in it. The girl was a Twi'lek, one of the few that was currently training-the only female in Twi'lek group. If Ben was right, her name was Igni or Iggi, he was unsure. Perhaps it was fate, Ben thought as she literally arrived to his door.

"Yes?" Ben questioned, looking down at her as she smiled up at him, playing with one of her lekkus- like how Lirri would twirl her hair.

She didn't say anything as Ben raised his eyebrow and looked at her. "What can I do for you?"

"Master Skywalker is doing a relaxing night under the stars since there's supposed to be a visible meteor shower. He thinks it'll be great to relax and meditate with." Igni/Iggi spoke as Ben nodded.

Ben could see that she was bubbly, as shown by her tone and constant bouncing between her feet. Her eyes roamed over his body with a dark hue on her cheeks. Ben was pretty sure that Igni/Iggi was fawning over him.

Glancing down at his wardrobe, Ben realized he was shirtless.

"Oh right, that. I'll meet you guys out there." Ben spoke, giving her a small smile that was completely false before shutting the door on her face.

On the other side, he could hear a small voice on the other side." Oh- okay."

After everything that had gone on earlier, Ben knew that he should work on his image while he was still there. Being social and open would give him a better diversion. However, he knew that required more clothing.

Ben pulled on a thick long sleeved shirt, wishing for his black one that was missing as he slipped on shoes. He waited until the hallways were empty before leaving. As he stepped out, a sweet smell and the light spilling out to the hallway alerted Ben to someone in the kitchen.

Walking in, he noticed Lirri trying to juggle things once again. It was almost normal. Lirri hated asking for help, or using the force to carry things. Over her shoulder, she had a large bag slung over it with trays in her arm overflowing with cups, and some condiments needed for the hot drinks.

Her free hand was inching towards the large container of hot water to carry it as Ben stepped in to grab it before Lirri could as he smirked, looking down at Lirri.

"You do know that one benefit of using the Force is using it to carry things." Ben teased, as Lirri stuck her tongue out.

Ben jokingly leaned forward making a biting motion as Lirri put her tongue back in her mouth. "Using the Force requires great concentration for a long period of time." She started moving as Ben followed. "With the slim hope that I wouldn't be distracted. You've met the people here, I am constantly distracted."

"Oh? What sort of distractions?" Ben cheekily asked as he saw her turn just to make sure that Ben saw her eyes roll.

"Well Padawans have a lot of questions, then there's animals. Or more likely this boyfriend of mine who likes to suddenly grab me and pull me into the pushes for a lot of things."

Lirri shifted the tray in her arm so that she could hold open the door for Ben, as he chuckled.

"So, we have some titles now?" Ben asked curiously as he slowed his pace so Lirri could keep up with him. Compared to his, her legs were tiny and had to work harder.

Nodding, Lirri looked over. "I thought so, why? What would you call us?" Her tone was worryful as she started guiding Ben down the path.

"That. I just haven't heard you ever say it. I like it a lot." Ben responded, as he let himself be washed over the jo of this title. "Just like I enjoy the idea of you being my girlfriend." Even if it was secret still. Lirri was great to raise his mood to a positive one, especially when he was dealing with the chaos of Snoke.

As they walked, Ben looked down he recognized the black shirt she was wearing. It was his soft long sleeve shirt that kept him warm and was the one he'd been looking for. "Is that my shirt?" Ben questioned, speeding up so he could look back and see the guilty blush on her face.

"Maaybe." Lirri began, before shrugging. "I don't know, I just grabbed the first clean shirt from my room."

"Sure," Ben spoke as they could hear the chatter of voices growing louder as Ben and Lirri grew close. As he walked past her, he whispered loud enough for only hear to hear. "I like you in my shirt; may need to have you wear just them more often." Ben winked as he moved faster so he could go set down the container of water.

Ben looked around to see everyone in little groups around the fire with blankets and logs around. Some Padawans even chose to brave the cold water for a swim as others talked at the bonfire. Luke was sitting on a bench with a pile of extra blankets as Lirri headed that way so she could place the tray down and remove the bag.

Ben picked the water up again so he could set it where Lirri wanted, hands overlapping for a moment as Ben smiled at her.

"Thanks Ben."

He began to look around for somewhere to sit as Igni noticed this, she started waving at Ben and pointed to the empty seat near her. The other logs were already taken for, by people or their items as he chose to sit on the same log but at the far end which was the closest to Luke and Lirri's log. If he stretched out his leg, the two could nudge one another's feet.

As she sat down, Lirri was unpacking containers full of treats, each labelled as some of the older Padawans were pouring tea for each of the group as others picked out their own treats.

Ben waited for the others to go through before grabbing his own; as he sat down, he noticed that Igni had scooted closer. Shoving the cookie into his mouth, Ben listened to Master Skywalker. His Uncle was telling different stories of his life as they asked.

Almost immediately, one of the girls Igni was close to started asking about Han and Leia's love story. To those on the outside, it was a wonderful story with the renowned player seeming male falling for this princess. Such a tale of glimmer and hope. When in reality, Ben felt different. Maybe they were in love at some point, but by the time Ben was around the love seemed to be gone. Replaced with arguments all the time and Han leaving frequently without reassurance that his father would come home. In turn, Leia would drown herself in work. If Ben was being honest with himself, Ben sometimes wished his father could stay away so his mother could move on. Sure there would be a brief moment of happiness, it was guaranteed to be followed by another argument the next day. Only to repeat more frequently with each year.

Ben tuned the words out as he watched Lirri listening quite intently to Luke. She was fiddling with the cup in her hand, and had the same kind of dopey love struck look on her face. However, she kept glancing over to Ben with a small smile.

Ben smiled back at her as he realized that at the end of the day, it seemed like Lirri was a romantic at heart.

As the meteor shower began to slow down, the Padawans began to leave one by one with a few requiring an encouraging nudge by Luke or Lirri to head to bed after falling asleep. Everyone was assured that tomorrow would be a light day for classes to give them a bit of a break after all the fantastic progress that was made.

Eventually, Ben and Lirri were the only students left, promising Luke that they'd clean up to give Luke a break too. Although the students missed it, Ben and Lirri could see the tired bags under his eyes.

Lirri was grabbing all the blankets and leftover supplies; thankful the load was lighter since the Padawans took their used dishes with them. As Ben helped her shove the items into the bag, she looked up at Ben with a smile. The fading glow of the fire giving Lirri a warm touch.

"Tonight was great. I think we need to do this more so we can all open up and form better emotional relationships with one another." She was beaming as Ben smiled.

"Yes, but if I remember the Jedi Code correctly, it says 'There is no emotion, there is peace. There is no ignorance, there is knowledge. There is no passion, there is serenity. There is no chaos, there is harmony. There is no death, there is the Force" Ben rhymed off before pulling Lirri to his chest.

Lirri's arms wrapped around his neck, as one hand rubbed the back of his neck as she tilted her head. "Yes, but I grew up with Master Skywalker's version. Emotion, yet peace. Ignorance, yet knowledge. Passion, yet serenity. Chaos, yet harmony. Death, yet the Force."

Lirri paused for a moment, before she continued. "The world could never be purely a black and white issue. So the way of the Force must adapt or we shall all fall."

Pausing for a moment Lirri continued. "The world could never be black and white, so the way of the Force must adapt to this."

Ben was happily shocked when Lirri voiced something about the shades of grey as he smiled and kissed her softly. His voice was quiet as he spoke.

That's one thing I love about you, you understand. There isn't just a light side or a dark side. It's an old fashioned system."

Lirri was looking up at him with a smile as he saw her keeping her mouth shut, curling in her lips a bit to be an obvious attempt to hide her yawn. Ben kissed her forehead before pulling away to grab the container. He turned and dumped the remaining water on the fire to smother it as he pulled the tray towards himself using the Force. This left Lirri to carry the folded pile of blankets.

"Why don't we head back before I have to carry you too since I'd leave all these other objects here."

Lirri led the way as Ben followed, enjoying their slow pace through the dark as their trail was only lit by small lights every few meters or so. Lirri had been too tired to put things properly back as they dumped the items in the kitchen before she padded towards the soaking mugs trying to get a headstart on cleaning.

Ben knew that in her tired state, Lirri would likely fall asleep over the sink incredibly sore in her attempts to clean everything. With his mind set, Ben went behind her and scooped the lighter girl up in a bridal style hold. "Ben I'm not tired-" Lirri began as Ben looked her in the eyes as he focused.

"Just sleep." Instantaneously, Lirri fell asleep with her head against Ben's shoulder. He didn't want to carry Lirri back to her room, knowing it'd be simpler to just get to his room and if he were being honest, Ben slept better when she was near.


	11. Chapter 11

p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben looked at himself in the mirror as he tried to pump himself up to give himself a false sense of security. He needed to complete his task tonight. Earlier in the day, he had asked Igni as he found out to be her actual name, to come speak with him at sundown near the cliff. To be safe, Ben had made sure that Lirri was distracted to ensure she had no possible chance of getting in their way. He had laced some of the food with herbs that would cause them to be throwing up and other unpleasant symptoms. /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Sucking in a deep breath, Ben walked out of his room as he passed Lirri who was in the medic room doing inventory before shit hit the fan and she was overwhelmed with sick Padawan. Ben stepped in, shutting the door behind him as he laid on the bed. He was waiting for her to acknowledge his presence as she was crouched, half in the cupboard; muttering various numbers to herself. Ben watched as she scooted her way out and let out a heavy sigh before writing down her numbers./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben cleared his throat to alert Lirri of his presence as she glanced around with her eyes widening in surprise. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Ben, what are you doing here?" She asked as she walked over to stand beside the bed as Ben sat up as Lirri raised her eyebrows. "I thought everyone was busy with training toda-" /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Lirri let out a squeal as arms wrapped around her hips, dragging her down to be close with Ben as his face nuzzled against her neck./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""What if someone notices you are gone? Or comes in. Ben, I don't want us outed by a rumor." Lirri spoke as Ben groaned before kissing her neck./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""I honestly don't care anymore. Aren't you tired of having to follow the rules?" Ben asked as he leaned back to lay on the bed with Lirri laying on his chest. Her fingers were grazing through his soft hair as as her eyes stared into his own as she shrugged. /spanbr /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""These rules are here for a reason Ben. If you'd like, we can announce our relationship after I finish inventory." Lirri offered with a smile that Ben gave in return./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Sounds nice." Ben whispered as he tried to not be disappointed that Lirri hadn't spoken exactly what he wanted her to. Instead, he decided to appreciate the time he could with Lirri./span br /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"One of his hands moved to pull her headband away as short hairs fell around her face, as she let out a tired sigh and nuzzled closer to Ben as he held her close./span br /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"If he could pay to repeat a memory forever, it'd be this one as Lirri stayed there for a few minutes before leaning up as she cupped his cheeks. From the cupping, Ben's lips were puckered as Lirri giggled before giving him a quick kiss. He could only imagine how he looked in that instance as he looked at Lirri./span br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""How much free time do you have Ben?"/span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"br /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Smiling, Ben took a moment to think before pressing his lips gently against hers and answering in a whisper. "Enough to show you how much I love you." Lips reconnected with Lirri as he hoisted her up before turning so her back was against the mattress./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"-/span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben was tapping his foot on the ground as he leaned against the wide tree. To his left was the cliff while far to his right was the trail. Ben had skipped dinner, to avoid getting sick like the rest of them and to arrive before Igni did. As he heard the rustling in the bushes, Ben focused his attention over to see that she finally arrived. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Igni was grinning ear to ear at the secret rendezvous as Ben glanced over to the cliff again. Igni came to stand in front of him, rocking on her heels and her fingers toying with the sleeves as she smiled up at him. "So, Ben. What is it that you wanted to talk with me about?" Igni questioned. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben looked down at her as he realized how unaware she seemed to be. He decided to play it out a teeny bit longer, building her trust. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Well, what you think?" Ben prodded as Igni started a tangent. She was going on about what her and the other girls were thinking and about what she hoped. Hearing it annoyed Ben, and he debated seeing how she would react if he told her the truth that he was more than happily taken but he continued. /spanbr /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"She seemed pretty unaware as he shrugged and decided to play it out a bit longer and build the trust. "Well, what do you think?" Ben prodded as Igni began to ramble about what the girls she had thought it meant and what she hoped. He almost wanted to break her spirits immediately and say he was happily taken but Ben continued on the charade./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"As soon as Igni made direct eye contact with her again, he waved his hand. /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""You will cease talking." Ben stated as her body stiffened as she repeated what he spoke before turning silent. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Pleased, Ben waved his hand in front of her face before giving her instructions. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""You will walk towards your right and keep walking even when there is no ground under you." Ingi parroted it back before she started following his command. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben felt anxious as he watched Igni move so slowly. Perhaps he should have told her to run or to jump for it to be quicker. It felt surreal as he knew what he did but he was still unable to believe it. In a mere moment, Ben would be responsible for her death. His heart raced as his eyes stayed focus on her. /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"At about two meters away from the cliff, Ben heard a gasp to his right as he saw Lirri. Before he could react, she was running towards Igni, screaming out at the Twi'lek./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Ben was full of anger as he tried to knit pick each moment that may have given this away to Lirri as he ran towards her to stop Lirri but was unsuccessful. Turning, Ben ran down the path towards the beach knowing the two were dropping down to the water or already in it. /spanbr /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"-/span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Lirri was never intentionally listening in to the Padawan's conversations at dinner time. However, when Ben's name came up, Lirri couldn't help but listen as she slowed down in clearing the dishes up. Setting the tub of dishes down, Lirri worked to grab the plates and other dishes as she snooped./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Ben, as in Ben Solo?" One of the Padawans asked, with Igni nodding her head excitedly./spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Yep." She answered with an emphasis on the 'p' before continuing. "Ben told me that he wants to meet me in an exclusive area, overlooking the lake." Igni stood up as she let out a happy sigh. "I should go get ready; we're meeting at sundown. Don't wait up since I feel like maybe we'll get some all night fun." Igni winked at her friends./spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Lirri heard this is as her stomach dropped and jealousy coursed through her. In her hand was a glass that slipped from her hand, shattering on the floor, as she jumped back with Igni turning to her. /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Are you okay Lirri?" /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Lirri was confused as she rushed to start picking up the larger chunks./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""Yeah, just tired from inventory is all." Lirri lied as she smiled. " I got this Igni, thank you." /spanbr /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""If you're sure." Igni stood up, glancing at Lirri once more before leaving. Lirri rushed to pick all the pieces up as she headed to the kitchen and placed the broken dish and tub on the counter./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"It was hard to breath and that she could not think straight. Lirri had to resist the urge to march straight up to Ben for an explanation, yet half of her wanted to give Ben the benefit of the doubt. Maybe Igni was just confused, after all they just wanted to talk. Lirri felt awful since she knew that Ben was thinking about telling everyone that they were dating. If Ben was dating Igni too, then Lirri couldn't be mad at Igni, since the girl seemed unaware. Ben, however, she could be furious with. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Deciding to get to the bottom of it, Lirri headed out as she saw Igni going out too. Changing her plan, Lirri followed behind, to protect Igni. She was far enough back, ducking in bushes whenever Igni looked back. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"When they arrived close to the clearing, Ben was standing in the center. Lirri hid behind a tree since if she got closer, Ben would notice her. She squinted to see more as she bit her lip and remained quiet. Things seemed wrong as Igni stiffened as if frozen. She was out of character being so still and nonverbal. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"The young girl began walking towards the cliff, as dread washed over her. She needed to save Igni. /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Lirri pushed off of the tree as she bolted forward, chasing the Twi'lek who was almost at the end. Ben had flashed in her vision to the side but her priorities were different. As Igni started going over, Lirri lunged forward to grab Igni. Lirri misguided this as she cried out, realizing that now she was falling too. As she fell, Lirri realized that she could have used the Force but it was too late now./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"When she hit the water, Lirri gasped as the sharp sensation. Her lungs burned as she intook water and lacking air as the strong current threw her around as she hit her head against something hard under the water. It dazed her for a moment as everything duplicated. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Seeing the two Igni's overlapping, Lirri swam towards the girl as she felt for Lirri. She grabbed onto it tightly before pulling the body close and kicked with all her strength to break the surface. She knew it had to be soon since her body was starting to scream in pain and desperation for air./span br /br /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"As they broke the surface, Lirri gasped for air as she dragged the two to shore. As she felt the sand and small ledge, Lirri hoisted herself up and dragged Igni over. Taking a moment before she pulled herself out of the water. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Her eyes were heavy, fighting to stay open as her head pulsed with the world spinning. Igni didn't move as Lirri crawled over to her. She started checking for a pulse but was unsuccessful as Lirri let out an annoyed grunt before beginning CPR where she was pretty sure was where a Twi'lek heart was. /spanbr /br /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"It was a struggle to restart her heart and stay conscious, as Lirri tried to focus on reviving Igni. With each movement, it grew harder. /spanbr /br /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""C-com-come o-on-on I- Ig- igni." Lirri stumbled out, stuttering no matter how she tried; from either the cold water or her head injury. Her arms starting collapsing on her as she continued to push back up and try to continue the CPR. /spanbr /span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"br /spanspan style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;"Her body's exhaustion finally overcame her as Lirri passed out on Igni, unaware that the girl started coughing and breathing faintly./span/p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;" /p  
p style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: 'Lucida Grande', 'Lucida Sans Unicode', 'GNU Unifont', Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 1.286em auto; padding: 0px; line-height: 1.5; color: #2a2a2a;"span style="border: 0px; outline: 0px; font-weight: inherit; font-style: inherit; font-size: 15.12px; font-family: inherit; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;""C-co-come o-o-on Ig-ig-niiii." Lirri stumbled out as she continued the compressions even when she fell and pushed herself back up. Lirri's eyes finally closed as she fell onto Igni, not realizing the faint coughing come from Igni or the barely moving chest./span/p 


	12. Chapter 12

Ben arrived at the beach as he saw the two girls collapsed onto the sand, clothes heavy with water as he walked over to see that both were still breathing. Kneeling beside the two, Ben brushed some of Lirri's hair off of her face and away from her head injury and face.

She wasn't supposed to get involved in all of this, Lirri was supposed to stay busy and then when the time was right, he'd swooped in and bring her over to their new happily ever after. Now, she was bruised, unconscious and bleeding as she laid over Igni.

Ben was far past the point of backing out as he stared at the girl who should be dead. She was the only thing between his destiny; he could practically feel this power in his fingertips. The more he looked at Igni, the more his blood boiled with rage.

Raising one hand, he focused his attention as Igni began sputtering and gasping. Glaring, Ben focused as he closed his hand more as he heard a cracking noise before Igni stopped all together with her body stiffening at first before falling completely limp.

A wave of calmness fell over him when he was done as he turned back to Lirri as he came to a realization. While Lirri still worked in the 'lighter' shades of grey, he would have to leave her. Once he had enough power, Ben could show her why he did what he did. When he was powerful like his grandfather, Ben could woo Lirri back to him. His eyes stung with tears as he carefully leaned down to press a kiss against her head; knowing it was only a temporary goodbye.

Pulling away, Ben's steps were quick and shaky as he headed to the meeting spots for Snoke.

Luke had never expected something like this, especially when he was having some difficulty processing the information himself. His only nephew left in the middle of the night as he was distracted with the overflow of sick students and Igni's mysterious death distracting Lirri.

He was still unsure on how to break the bad news to his apprentice as she was now awake trying to figure out answers after being unconscious for two weeks. Even now, they sat in her room as he tried to explain.

Lirri turned on her bed, looking at Luke as her shaky hands clung to the cup of tea as she hung her legs off of the bed. Her eyes were red and puffy. Luke could tell that Lirri was trying to process everything told to her.

"Bu-but why?" Lirri finally asked as Luke put a hand on Lirri's knee as an act of empathy.

"I'm afraid that I can't give you an answer Lirri." His voice was soft, as he continued. "Just know that you did all you could to make Ben feel welcomed here and tried to save Igni."

Luke had seen how close Ben was with Lirri, even with them thinking they were discreet. He didn't want to disturb it since they weren't interring with day to day life and wanted Ben to be the one sharing it when comfortable.

They say in silence for a bit, it wasn't comfortable but also not awkward.

Lirri's fingers tapped against the cup as Luke glanced up to see the tears streaming down her face as she tried to choke back the sobs. Luke took his hand back as he let Lirri let out these emotions as he sat there patiently. Luke had shed his own tears as he sent the letter to Leia.

"Lu- Luke I need to go find him. I need to find clues." The girl set her mug down nearby as she stood onto her feet, wobbling as Lirri tried to ground herself. Luke lurched forward as he went to catch her, putting out a hand out to stop him.

Sighing, Luke looked at her. "I don't think that is wise since we are unsure where to look for him."

Immediately, Lirri looked at him with an upset look as she began to flail her arms. "Luke I can't just sit here though. Ben is out there!" Lirri wanted answers, but more importantly Lirri needed to get away from the temple.

When she thought about the Jedis, it reminded her of everything terrible that happened. Lirri had failed one of her Padawans, Igni was pulled out of the water too late; she thought anyways since her details were fuzzy after Igni went over the cliff.

"I understand, Lirri, but please wait until you've fully recovered." Luke stood up as he placed his human hand on her shoulder. "You won't be able to run a ship in your current conditions. I have faith that we will see Ben again, keep your chin up."

The tension was still around until Luke saw Lirri nod slowly as Luke embraced his apprentice in a tight hug.

Later, when Luke ended leaving Lirri, she was sound asleep. He knew it would be on a matter of time before Lirri's dreams took over. After experiences with Lirri previously, in her times of emotional duress, her dreams became excessive.

After checking in on the rest of the Padawans, Luke went out to watch the stars. Deep down, Luke had a terrible feeling about Ben and what was to come. However, he didn't know if he could bear to think about it.

Leaning back, Luke sent a thought and prayer out to the sky. Whenever Ben was, Luke hoped his nephew was safe.

Only a month later, Lirri was up to leaving as she left with active communication between the two even though she'd be gone for a short while. They had made the training grounds easily for Luke to keep in working order by himself; with a little more help from the Padawans on chores. Lirri had taken a small, one man ship that she was using for food supplies, herbs and inspect a possible lead about Ben. Her trip was one that felt lonely, but Lirri began to get adapt to that feeling after many errand trips. After all, when she returned she'd be in company again.

Unfortunately for her, the lead led to nothing and as she was planning on heading back, Luke called her telling Lirri to not return to the Jedi temple. Instead he gave her the coordinates to a place called Maz Kanata's. Lirri was terrified since Luke would never leave the Padawans alone without either of them.

When she arrived, Luke was in a terrible shape. He was covered in cuts and bruises and Lirri was sure that this was only the surface since they seemed to darken towards the hem of his clothes. They had a table at the back and Luke avoided eye contact with her.

"Lirri… they're all gone." Luke spoke as he squeezed his eyes shut.

"We can get them back-"

"No, The Knights of Ren, they came and killed them all." Luke spoke as Lirri tensed up, processing the information as she opened and shut her mouth a few times.

"Luke, they couldn't have taken all of the Padawans; there must be some survivors. Like the older Padawans should have been able to defend themselves and others."

Lirri stood up as she slammed her hands on the table.

"We'll go back and check for survivors. Then we can make sure to hide somewhere else and protect them. Same with any new force sensitives we find!" Her mind was going 14 parsecs a second, trying to solve the issue with the little information she had, still not understanding the situation.

"Lirri, we can't."

"What do you mean we can't?" she asked hesitantly before sitting back down.

"The whole training grounds… they're destroyed. All of it. The other force sensitives were killed before we were attacked." Luke explained as her shoulders dropped. Luke knew what she was wondering but he wouldn't tell her the answer about if he knew about Ben.

Standing up, Luke ushered Lirri to walk with him as he tied his cloak back on.

The pair walked to the lake, knowing that the calm atmosphere would be easier than the dark and loud bar. Lirri focused on watching the water, her lips pursed together as she occasionally glanced at Luke.

"Neither of us are safe and I don't think I could protect you." Luke saw her shock as he kept talking. "Together we're at a higher risk of dying. I'm leaving to a place no one can find me." Placing his hand on her shoulder, he smiled. "I know you're strong enough to survive but please stay safe and lay low. If you are really concerned, please go to the Resistance; my sister Leia is there. Just keep an ear out for the Knights of Ren and avoid them at all costs."

The words sunk in as Lirri immediately hugged her master tightly. He could hear her crying as she choked out a "Luke...thank you."

She pulled away as she smiled sadly at him. "This isn't a permanent goodbye, Master. We will meet again." She promised before whispering. "May the Force Be With You."

"Maybe the force be with you too." Luke spoke, although he seemed hesitant as he handed her a small parcel. "Eventually, you'll know what to do with this."


	13. Chapter 13

**This fic up to this point was edited May 14, 2018. I forgot to write that on previous chapters.**

Lirri walked slowly across the desert of Tuanul, stopping at some of the vendors as she bought fruit and other trinkets that caught her eyes. To an outsider, she came across as any other person there. Her hair was covered in a hood, with a scarf wrapped around her neck so if it gets windy, she could cover her face. Green eyes scanned the desert until she saw a man on the other side of the market.

He was an older man with white hair and Lirri immediately recognized it as her contact. She finished her purchases, before walking towards the exit of the market. Lirri glanced back to see the man, Lor San, following her as she leaned against the wall until Lor San got near her.

Lor San smiled at her as he waved for Lirri to follow him as they went to the small hut. As they went in, Lor San immediately offered her a seat as she sat down before pulling down her hood and smiling at the elderly gentleman.

"Mr. Tekka, thank you for having me." Lirri spoke as he sat across from her.

"Well, after you and your master's communications, I wanted to get in touch with you as quickly as I could." Lirri's hand shifted anxiously in her lap.

"Yes. It's been some time since Master Skywalker has sent communication to me. He wanted me to give you this." Lirri spoke as she pulled out something from her hidden pocket in the jacket. It was a small drive that Lirri had wrapped in a cloth to protect it from the sand.

Lor San put his hand out as Lirri took a moment, debating it before putting it Lor San's hand. If this was who Luke wanted her to give it to, then who was she to argue? It felt strange to be without the drive, after all she had been holding onto it for quite a long time.

"I've already been working on finding a secure contact to get in touch with General Organa and the Resistance. With how things are going with the Order, we may need Luke soon."

She sighed in agreeance. "Well, it has been almost 10 years now." Lirri ran a hand through her hair as she responded. Lor San could see the exhaustion the young woman from her journey so far. From what he had heard from Leia, Lirri was rarely in the same place long enough to settle. At most a few weeks.

"Anyways, I should leave now Mr. Tekka." Lirri added as she stood up, bringing her hood up and gave him a small smile. "Trouble sometimes follows me." She left the hut and returned to her ship. She had flown away from the spiritual village on Jakku as she let out an anxious breath that she had been holding since she landed on Jakku.

When she saw Odem, Lirri chose to land the small ship on one of its islands and made sure it was hidden under the foliage. After the ship landed, Lirri took a walk before she let herself a breath of relief and have a moment of peace. There was no one else nearby as she sat under a lovely tree. She gave herself a short few minutes to meditate and calm her mind.

When she felt relaxed, Lirri headed back to her ship and collapsed on the cot in a restless sleep; the first in a few days.

When Lirri awoke, there was a strange feeling in her gut, as she rubbed the back of her neck. It stayed with her even after eating and working on the system to trace her steps. The unsettling feeling made her decide that she needed to leave Odem and head towards Maz Kanata's at Takodana.

It was a long trip and she needed more water to manage it. She headed to the faraway stream, which seemed to take forever to walk to. As she walked back, there was a heavy pressure filled the air; with nothing but dread.

Quickening her steps, Lirri was focused on getting back to her ship and leaving this planet when her eyes landed on the Storm Troopers up ahead. It had been a few months since Lirri had stumbled upon Storm Troopers, but last time she had evaded them then.

Lirri hoped for the best as she chose to try and evade the Storm Troopers. Near her was a large tree with heavy foliage as Lirri scrambled up the tree hastily before hiding in the leaves. She ignored the sticks and raised bars that scraped up her skin. From her spot, Lirri could see the Storm Troopers.

They were looking in the same direction as she noticed a silver clad Storm Trooper, who had to be their boss. Unlike the usual, which was just a basic flock of white clad ones.

Moving towards the middle of the branches, Lirri took a calming breath and sipped her water, planning on staying there for awhile as she then lifted her hood and keeping her scarf up to mask her hair and face.

Lirri was judging her situation as she tried to keep masking her presence in the tree. Don't mind her if you could see her, she was simply part of the tree. That's when she saw a dark clad figure wearing a cape and dark metal helmet. Kylo Ren. The murderer of the Jedi Padawans. Her heart pounded, and brain raced in hopes of trying to come up with a plan to get somewhere where she could hitch a ride to Maz Kanata's.

A few hours passed as she watched as the Silver Storm Trooper and Kylo Ren were discussing a plan, for what she didn't know. The other Storm Troopers were spread far away but she could hear the chainsaws tearing down trees nearby.

Quietly, Lirri took the opportunity to climb down the tree in hopes that she could get away. As she was nearly down the tree, Lirri heard one of the Storm Trooper's metallic yelling with a blaster going off. Lirri turned on instinct, raising her hand to stop the shot in its track about 10 feet from the tree.

Realizing that if she was the person he was looking for, Kylo Ren now had proof that she was Force Sensitive, if he hadn't already known now. This was like signing her own death sentence as Lirri took the shocked Storm Troopers's hesitance, Lirri jumped off of the tree while letting go of the blaster's beam. Lirri could feel the leaves and sparks around her as she ran through the woods in a zig zagged pattern between the trees. The shots were missing her thanks to the thick forest around her.

She didn't have time to focus on her thoughts with her body moving quicker than she thought possible. Shots were getting closer to Lirri as she glanced back. The Silver Storm Trooper was pointing at something ahead of Lirri. Not wanting to see what they were pointing at, Lirri made a sharp turn to the right as she nearly crashed into a tree before catching herself.

Every instinct was going wild, as she realized that Lirri made a mistake with the energy getting stronger around her as she moved.

To her left, Lirri saw a small opening between two close trees as she moved her body to turn when a sharp force drove against her shoulder. It tossed her off of her feet, tumbling to the ground as she rolled into a tree trunk as she cried out in pain.

Lirri stood up, with her right hand touching her left shoulder, as she felt the wetness already pooling in her clothes and fingers as the smell of copper invaded her smell. Definitely blood. Her senses were in overdrive as she continued running once more. When she passed a tree, Lirri saw black and bright red flashed in the corner of her eye as the familiar buzz of a lightsaber as Lirri dashed to the right but was caught with an arm around her waist before being pushed against the tree. She was forced around as a hand went around her throat, dragging her up the bark until she was eye level with Kylo Ren and her feet were dangling from the ground. Her hood had fallen as she clawed at the gloved hand around her throat. His other hand held the lightsaber with the end getting too close to her face.

Her only thought was that she couldn't go out this way. She wasn't going to die of lightsabers or by being choked by this man.

Kylo Ren leaned towards her as fear overcame Lirri and her ability to handle the Force without focus. "Sleep" he commanded, his voice having the same metal crackling as she resisted a moment before her body went limp and eyes shutting.

Kylo scooped her unconscious body up in his arms as he walked towards Captain Phasma. Gesturing with his head to the ship, he gave her a single command. "Search the ship." before walking away with Lirri.

Kylo kept a passive eyes as the Storm Troopers returned Lirri to her chair; ensuring that they properly put the restraints in place so that she couldn't get out. When finished, he sent the guards away and let out the deep breath he was holding. After the door was shut, Kylo removed his helmet and put it on the side as Ben stared at the familiar face that was unconscious in front of him.

Nearly a decade later, and Kylo could still picture how she looked then. She definitely aged since then as he eyed her. Her body was more defined with her hips wider, giving her a pear shape. Her skin was still tanned, as if kissed by the sun yet it did nothing to hide the dark circles under eyes. Her face was framed by hair that she had allowed to grow out.

Without stress lines and no thoughts invading her mind, Lirri looked at peace in that moment after the ordeals that the Storm Troopers put her through for interrogations.

This was the first time that Kylo had seen Lirri properly since watching over the Troops interrogating her or when she was injured and nearly drowned. Kylo watched her for a few more moments, until she started stirring before he turned and put his helmet back on. Revealing himself would be something to use an an upperhand for shock if necessary.

A soft groan escaped Lirri's lips as he stood in front of her, as she took her times to open her eyes as he observed. She wheezed and coughed as he noticed blood trickling from her mouth. Kylo folded his hands together with his emotions hidden under his mask.

When her eyes opened, Lirri's eyes ran over Kylo Ren's form as she cussed under her breath, closing her eyes and leaning her head back.

"Just go ahead and kill me now." Lirri muttered as Kylo tsked, stepping forward.

"Now why would we do that?" Kylo asked, as he observed her body language. Her shoulders tensed, and eyes squeezed painfully tight.

"Since you won't give you any information, Ren." her voice has a hint of honesty in it; to her this was the truth.

"I must admit, I would be quite impressed that no one has gotten any information out of you. All we want to know is who you gave the map to. We haven't found it in any of your possessions, so we know you gave it away." He was calm as he brought a stool closer to his prisoner.

Lirri smirked as she leaned her head up. "You think I would give away information to the mind washed soldiers who hide behind masks or any members of the First Order?" She scoffed as her green eyes looked towards the mask.

He leaned forward on his stool, as Kylo tilted her head. "Of course I do, everyone breaks eventually." he looked down a bit to the bruises littering her skin with the cut marks and her red shoulder that seemed inflamed.

Taking his hand, Kylo pressed his hand on Lirri's shoulder as a painful gasp escaped her lips while trying to shake her shoulders to get his hands off of her. Kylo's hand pushed harder down as he looked into her face. She was biting her lip to suppress the noise. Kylo continued as she began to whimper.

Pulling his gloved hand away from her, Kylo leaned back as Lirri caught her breath. "I- won't break and tell you." Lirri whispered as Kylo nodded before he heard a knocking on the door; as he stood up to storm over and open it.

On the other side was General Hux standing impatiently as Kylo looked at him.

"We have a meeting, Ren."

"I'm busy."

"It's with Snoke." Hux began as Kylo let out a heavy sigh; it was not something to put off. Supreme Leader Snoke was not someone test.

Glancing back to Lirri, he smirked before leaving the room as he waved. Telling the group behind Hux as he sent the Storm Troopers in to continue.

-

Lirri's teeth were chattering as she was tossed back into the board chair thing that she has spent most of her time in nowadays. Her damp clothes stuck to her skin as she felt them placing the braces around her ankles and wrists. They were tight and dug into wrists which were already worn raw from her escape attempts.

While left alone, exhaustion was starting to take ahold of her as she knew it would only be some time until The First Order were torturing her again.

However, a blaring noise brought her awake as she glared up at the Stormtrooper in the room. "No sleeping allowed." The Stormtrooper walked away as Lirri closed her eyes, only to hear the blaring noise again.

The Stormtrooper was near her again as she glared at him. This was the newest wave of commands for torture from General Hux. She wasn't given food, and only a small cup of water per day. Now without sleep, Lirri lost her chill. Glaring at the Stormtrooper, she took a deep breath.

"You WILL let me sleep." Lirri declared, feeling power behind her words to the Stormtrooper. The troop stiffened their posture.

"I will let you sleep."

"You will guard the door so I can sleep."

"I will guard the door so you can sleep."

The Stormtrooper spoke as they walked over to the door and started guarding it. Lirri relaxed as her body craved the rest. Lirri knew that if she had tried to escape in this state, it would fail. She didn't have the energy to go out as she let sleep overcome her; not caring she was still cuffed.

When she woke up later, Lirri's body was stiff yet felt more alert with a sense of clarity as she rolled her head back and forth to loosen her neck. Smiling at feeling even just a bit better, Lirri started humming a song that the Padawans would sing by the fire as she awaited the dread of the First Order returning.

Just as she was finishing her song, the door slid open as Kylo came through, his anger was seeping from him as Lirri remained neutral. Kylo stormed up to Lirri as he immediately pushed into her mind. He wanted to get into her thoughts as Lirri cried out and resisted him. Lirri refused to give him any information.

Her brain focused on any memories that were free of information to delay him as she put up more barriers on any information about the drive with the map.

A bonfire was in her mind as she thought about how different Padawans showed off their talents. The memory went through everyone leaving except for Ben and how Lirri saw him in the light of the fire.

The pain her mind was incredible as Lirri focused on her positive memories. Time seemed to pause for her as he continued trying to fight her mind. When the sensation finally ended, Lirri watched at Kylo as she watched his reaction.

His clenched fist showed his annoyance as he relaxed one hand to go behind his masks. The helmet hissed as some of the pieces moved and Kylo removed it. Lirri immediately noticed the waves of dark hair and a face that Lirri could recognize in a heartbeat; even without the roundness from his baby fat.

She bit her lip as her eyes dropped down to Kylo's chest- trying to think about anything other than his face or personality. Lirri could feel her heart aching as Kylo began to speak with he voice more natural to her than the filtered voice from before.

"You're resilience is fruitless at this point, Lirri. We've already been tracking your journey on that ship of yours." Kylo spoke, leaning forward to grab her face by the chin and lifted it; forcing him to look him in the eye.

As he looked into her eyes, his expression softened as he leaned forward a bit. "Lirri, you can just give me this information and stop all of this running. We both know how tired you are. If you join me then you'd have a bed, a shower and people to do as you wish." He offered, his tone polite and optimistic as he softened the grip on her jaw.

Lirri broke the eye contact as she forced them to close and shook her head in his hand.

"Lirri you used to talk to me about the sides of grey; what happened to you? This isn't the black and white situation they've implanted into you."  
He hoped for her eyes to open again and look into his own.

The silence was unbearable for him as he heard Lirri began to speak. "No… you'll have to pry that information from me." Lirri sunk her head lower, as she whispered a bit more. "Master Skywalker is needed with the Resistance for the upcoming Force Sensitives. I can't let you murder more innocent youth."

Kylo let go of her face as his expression darkened.

"Fine; if you want it the hard way, we'll do it the hard way."


	14. Chapter 14

**Edited on May 14, 2018**

Lirri was unaware what time it was or where they were going as she was dragged down the artifically bright hallway. Her arms were bound in front of her, with her feet tied to one another so she barely could shuffle. The Stormtroopers didn't care as they gave up on her walking as they roughly dragged them. Her shins rubbed on the tiles, catching on anything as she apologized to a Stormtrooper who was currently mopping the floor outside.

In the room that Lirri was brought to was a large tub in the center full of water with a metal lid to the side of the container. Before she could react, Lirri was effortlessly thrown into the water; gasping from the surprise cold temperature.

A hand gripped onto her hair and twisted it in before pushing her head down under the water. As she was pulled upwards, Lirri noticed the Silver glint to the suit.

"Tell us where you left the map." The Stormtrooper questioned as Lirri shook her head, glaring at the person in the suit.

"No." Lirri spat out as her head was pushed under the water once more. Lirri squirmed as she tried to get out of the grasps as her lungs cried for air. Finally, she was pulled up as Lirri gasped for air.

Silver as Lirri chose to call the trooper began questioning her once more.

"Tell us where you left it."

"N- no." Lirri responded as she felt her stomach tighten, knowing what was about to happen next. Sure enough, Lirri was dipped under the water again as she continued to struggle as best she could. Her body was beginning to feel lethargic.

Lirri couldn't keep track of how many times this happened, other than her teeth were chattering and she could no longer struggle against the hand pushing her down and pulling her up. The Storm Trooper captain let her subordinate take over as the other began to leave.

"Perhaps some time to float will give the Jedi motivation to speak." The Storm Trooper nodded as Lirri could hear movements as a metal lid was brought over her and with a final push from the Stormtrooper holding her down, Lirri was trapped in a container with very little space between the water and the lid. The weights of her binds forced her to the bottom as she could barely get her nostrils into the pocket of air.

Lirri was panicking from the closed container and water; not being comfortable in water after her previous incident trying to help Igni. No matter how much she tried calming herself down, she couldn't as the chill ran through her from the cold water and panic.

Kylo was working hard as he suddenly felt something wrong in the force. It was something that he had rarely felt as of late. The Force had been calm around him these last few years, with only minimal spikes. The last time there was a disturbance of this magnitude was when he murdered the other Jedi Padawan.

Letting his emotions guide him as Ren stormed out of the meeting with Hux- not caring he was interrupted mid-sentence. Hux should be used to this by now as it was a common occurrence when Ren was chasing after Lirri for leads.

He stormed into the hallway as Ren noticed the Stormtroopers in front of the door paused their conversation as they saw Kylo come over. As soon as Kylo Ren walked past them and through the door; the two Stormtroopers bolted away from the room.

When he got in, Kylo felt the sense of disturbance being the water tank. Kylo could see through the small window of the water tank as he saw someone inside. Kylo threw the lid open of the container as he saw towards the bottom of the tank with only her nose stuck out of the water with her lips blue and limp.

When Kylo took her out of the container, he could hear her shallow breathing as his clothes were completely soaked from her dripping off of him. Instead of taking her to the medical area, Kylo headed to his own room and dumped her on his bed. Just as Kylo was going away, he felt Lirri's fingers weakly cling to him as she whispered barely loud enough for Kylo to hear. "Ben… don't leave me."

Her fingers slipped from his shirt as Kylo moved to cover her in quite a few layers of blankets. When he was sure it was good for Lirri, Kylo turned and decided to have a _brief_ discussion with Captain Phasma, making sure to keep his lightsaber in hand to ensure that he could clearly make a strong point.  
-

Lirri felt as if she were floating on a bed of air as she felt a warmth to her side. What she could even feel of her body was stiff and cold as she moved to curl around the warmth in hopes of getting it herself. Lirri felt comfortable in the soft blanket wrapped around as she buried her head closer to the warmth beside her.

"You're safe, Lirri." A soothing voice spoke to her as Lirri pressed against the warmth. The words repeated a few more times as she happily sighed. The voice sounded familiar as Lirri came to feel comfortable. She curled up more against the figure beside her, feeling a sense of grounding near it as Lirri let herself sleep once again.

When Lirri remembered walking up again, warm hands were moving her to a slightly raised position. Her body was stiff but she gave no resistance. There was something hard pressed against her lips as a warm and salty liquid poured down her throat. She barely registered the taste of the broth, but her body seemed thankful for nutrients and energy.

The dish left her lips as she opened her eyes a bit to see who was around, noticing dark curls of hair as she smiled a bit, staying her raised sitting position. Lirri was overflowing with trust in that moment, pulling the blanket up a bit on her as the warm body laid next to her. Lirri scooted nearer to them as she moved to rest her head on their chest.

person laid beside her again. Lirri scooted close to them and laid her head on their chest. Sleep came quickly again as she muttered a question under her breath.

"Did the drive get to Lor San?"

Lirri was unable to hear the answer as she fell unconscious once more.

After nearly two days since Kylo found Lirri in the water tank and brought her to his chambers he was searching for some answers. He went to his grandfather for advice on the situation on how to deal with the situation since although Phasma took his message to heart, it felt empty.

He had been tending to Lirri as carefully as she had cared for Ren back then. Every few hours or so, she'd speak and mumble different words or phrases before falling asleep. It was clear with what she spoke and the fever she had that Lirri wasn't exactly aware of her current circumstances, let alone remembering that she had been taken by the First Order.

He had requested soup be brought in as he got Lirri into a raised position before stirring the broth and making sure it wasn't too hot before he brought the bowl to her lips, pouring a small bit into her mouth. Lirri gulped it as she opened her mouth a bit more to drink broth hastily; Kylo wasn't even sure that Lirri had tasted it as she gulped it down. He did realize that she hadn't eaten in a few days according to Phasma and her methods.

When Lirri finished, Kylo continued to sit next to her as he ate his own soup, happy that his had actual vegetables and meat inside of it. He ate it slowly; as he thought about how his work was now focused out of his bedroom unless necessary. Lirri needed him now while she recovered since he knew that if she were left with the Stormtroopers, they'd leave her as she was and then their lead would be dead.

After finishing his meal, Kylo sighed and changed into his sleep clothes before laying next to her on his bed. Quite quickly, Lirri pressed against him and cuddled close to him with a happy sigh. Having her laying on him and being without general affection for so long, his heart almost ached. If Kylo was honest with himself, his skin still felt like sparks on his skin where Lirri pressed against him. It brought him back to many memories previously.

Knowing in here it was safe, Kylo wrapped his arms around her to pull her close as he stared at the ceiling. He was thinking about what General Snoke would think about this. After all this was technically his prisoner and previously Snoke was the one to command his murder of all the other Jedis and was annoyed with Ren when he found that Luke and Lirri lived.

As he was focused in his thoughts, he barely caught Lirri's mutterings. "Did… drive… Lor San?"

When Kylo looked down, Lirri was completely out once again. Kylo decided it was better to rest first as he pulled her closer to him and let himself sleep. Upon waking up later, knowing it was morning, Kylo moved carefully to not disturb Lirri as he rested her head on his pillow.

Kylo changed into his daywear as he headed to meet with Phasma and Hux. He wanted to get any leads they could on Lor San. Part of him felt a twinge of guilt when sharing this potential lead but that was literally why she was here and what Ren was trying to do in the first place.

General Hux's idea was to send ships back to each of the places that Lirri had gone to in search of a Lor San although he admitted it would take some time since she seemed to have messed with the computer. Phasma simply suggested beating the girl for more information, only for a table to be thrown in her direction.

After the meeting, Kylo rushed to the room where a family heirloom was and honestly Kylo's most prized possession. The mask was waiting for him as usual as Kylo sat down near it.

"Grandfather, I am torn. My duty is to rid the world of Jedi for all the problems they have caused in the world. The one person I cared about from my previous life has fallen back into my life." Kylo spoke as he sighed. "Just from her being around and needing to be cared for has those weak feelings. How were you able to keep these emotions buried Grandfather?"

He leaned back a bit before asking to the air. "I know you loved Grandmother but did you struggle with this?" Burying his face into his hand, Kylo took in a deep breath. "Please help me find answers."

General Snoke was expecting Kylo Ren soon as he stood up and looked back at the helmet. He didn't have answers at the moment but knew he'd get them soon enough from asking his Grandfather. Just even vocalizing his problems, helped greatly.

Walking through the halls, Kylo could see the Storm Troopers avoiding him as a small smirk formed on his lips under his mask. He was all powerful, he was a leader on the ship and to his Knights. This was greater than the days when he was simply Leia Organa's son.

Opening the door, Kylo walked in to see General Snoke waiting for him as Kylo walked to the center of the room as he bowed. Kylo waited until he was told to rise before removing his mask.

"The Jedi has slipped, Lord Snoke. She's told us a name. We are currently trying to figure out if it is a place, or a person's name."

"Good," Snoke hissed out as his hologram leaned into his large chair. "What is your plan for her now, Ren?"

Kylo paused as he stayed focused on the ground as he tried to honestly think. If he played this wrong, she'd be slain. "She used to be a great healer for the Padawans and Luke's old apprentice. If we can convince her to join or at least keep her here, she could be proven useful with information on things that we do not know."

"That's a wise plan. I have a new mission for you; I recall she was your paramour, yes?" Snoke leaned forward as he smiled. "Convince the girl to follow you using her emotions against her. Make her attached and she'll stay. Then she can be brought in to recruit and train the next Knights of Ren for the first order."

"Yes, my lord." Kylo spoke as he felt the confliction in his stomach; happy that he was dismissed afterwards.


	15. Chapter 15

**This was edited on May 14, 2018**

Kylo was laying on his bed trying to give Lirri the space for her to rest. Ren barely left her alone when he could seeing as he didn't trust the others on his ship, even with his power. This was mainly due to knowing that if Hux found his weakness, the General would use it on him in spite. Lirri would awake on occasion still to talk with him in her sleep, although a few were preposterous whereas a few were responses to his own questions.

Ren's back was laying flat on his bed, as Lirri curled against him again; which was expected from her since she was a cuddler since he met her. When she did it though, he sometimes heard her mumbling Ben.

Glancing over, Kylo saw her eyes fluttering open as Lirri gave a small smile to him. "Hey Ben," Lirri spoke as she leaned over to kiss him on his lips, staying there for a bit before pulling her lips away. He looked at her before dropping his hand. "Lirri, you need to rest-" he began as Lirri puffed up her cheeks and rested her head on his arm as she looked him in the eyes.

"Only if you stay. You can skip training, right?" Lirri questioned as he nodded. Lirri closed her eyes happily and snuggled in. Hesitantly, Kylo wrapped his arms around her and pulled Lirri close. He might as well take this moment for an innocent moment before Lirri realized where she truly was.

When he was sure that she was asleep, Kylo Ren placed moved to kiss her softly on the forehead. Kylo accepted this as a temporary moment of weakness for himself.

General Hux was staring at Kylo Ren in disbelief the next morning. The idiotic Knight of Ren wanted to keep that prisoner in his own chambers as under his wing unless otherwise specified? It was a ridiculous notion as Hux looked over at their Supreme Leader for guidance before just asking.

"What could have possibly implanted this ridiculous idea into your thick skull?" Hux finally questioned.

Ren turned to him, anger covering his face as he snapped. "How about you focus on finding what Lor San is. I left her in your and Phasma's care but Stormtroopers nearly killed her due to your employees that are clearly lacking." Hissing, Kylo threw hux across the room.

"Perhaps you should fix your training since I can at least keep my knights in check, unlike you."

Snoke boomed out finally as he forced the two away from one another. "Enough." Turning to Hux, Kylo is going to convince the Prisoner to join our cause by having her close."

"Are you planning on her becoming a Knight of Ren, my Lord?"

"Her place is undecided as of yet. Don't you think how it is curious how she has managed to survive nearly a decade even with The First Order searching? She could be a useful pawn due to her connections with the Rebels and Skywalker."

Hux accepted this answer as Kylo was now his focus. Slowly, Snoke began to turn towards Kylo as he leaned forward. "I will give you until when Hux and his team have gotten the complete map off of that drive to convince her. Or else I will _remove_ her. Understood?"

Kylo nodded as he immediately turned on his heel, storming through the halls as the thuds of all the Stormtroopers who were thrown out of the way and into the side walls. Throwing open his bedroom door; Kylo let it slam behind him as he threw his helmet across the room with a gut wrenching scream- angered by Hux and Snoke's conversation.

"Watch it!" Lirri was sitting on his bed, sitting up but still quite pale. Her hair was damp and clinging her as he eyed her over. Seeing her now had definitely matured her. What had caught his breath was seeing that she was sitting on his bed quite alert and wearing his sleep wear.

"I forgot you were here." Kylo lied as he set down his things.

"I took a shower, I really needed it." Lirri spoke as she moved her head from staring down in her lap before nodding towards the small door.

Kylo collected his helmet to put it with the other things as he calmed down and watched her. The tray of food he had left was still untouched. "Eat." he spoke before taking his chair to face her. There was displeasure on her face as she shook her head.

"Not hungry." Lirri mumbled, her voice raspy and congested as he watched her fiddling with the blankets near her. Grabbing the tray, he walked over to her and set the tray on her lap.

"Bull. You haven't eaten in at least a day and it was broth." He held the juice up to her lips as Lirri watched him. He continued to sit beside her, staring into her eyes to see if she would cave first or not. Finally, Kylo sighed as he even by tilting the cup she wouldn't drink as he took a sip as he raised his eyebrow and then once again put it on her lips.

Lirri finally took a small sip as Kylo smiled before her hand pushed it away. Kylo set the glass down on the nearby table. Curiosity was eating at Lirri but she wasn't going to ask them. Instead, she rubbed around her eyes since her sinuses felt like they were going to burst but her body was too weak to manipulate the Force in that moment to heal herself.

Hands wrapped around either of her wrists as her hands were pulled away gently. Kylo stared into Lirri's eyes as she stared at him.

"Don't use the Force on me, Ren." She muttered as Ren shook his head. Lirri was exhausted but didn't want to let her guard down again here since last time came with memories of enclosed spaces and water.

Lirri was exhausted, resisting letting herself be sick as Kylo rolled his eyes in annoyance as he moved to lay on the bed, pulling her down to rest over him. Lirri gasped as she stumbled onto his stomach and let go of one wrist to pull the blankets over the pair.

"What the fuck?" Lirri questioned, avoiding Kylo's eye contact as he looked at the reddening of her cheeks. Ren ignored the bubbling in his chest as he reminded himself this had to be business, not pleasure or at least it business had to be his priority.

"You need sleep and I would like to nap but I didn't want the bothersome conversation. Now we've shared a bed before; we can do it again unless you prefer to sleep on the floor which is quite uncomfortable."

Lirri paused, checking to see if he were serious. Soon, she relaxed in his touch and got comfortable on the bed, moving away from Kylo so that she was on the edge of the bed and her back faced towards the man. He let out a deep breath as he closed his eyes. Getting Lirri comfortable at all times would help him out, right?

Kylo listened as her breaths evened out. When he was completely certain that she was asleep he curled around her. His arm rested on her waist, and his other arm resting under his head.


	16. Chapter 16

Lirri woke before Kylo from his nap as she examined him. While sleeping, this was the man she had known in that past life of theirs. Without either his literal or metaphorical masks that he hid behind. Deciding that she needed to stretch her legs, Lirri carefully crawled over Kylo as she headed to the washroom and shut the door behind her quietly. Having the private space was good for her mind.

She found his brush and tried taming the mess of bed hair that had not had a proper chance to be brushed after her shower and dunk tank incident as she referred to it. It was getting too long for her liking, but there was not much Lirri could do about that now, after all she was still technically a prisoner, even though her conditions had changed.

She was going to search his room for some sort of hair tie, or string so she could at least pull it away from her face. Lirri splashed her face with water, and drank a bit from it knowing it was safe since they wouldn't drug their entire water supply for just her sake. She stayed in the tiny washroom for a bit longer before deciding it was time to head out in case Kylo freak out thinking she was trying to drown herself, which of all the ways to die was not how she wanted to go out… even though it almost took her out twice now.

Glancing to the bed, Lirri noticed that Kylo had not made a single move. However, being close to him and the darkness made her stomach cringe. Walking to the other side of the room, she set herself on the floor with her legs crossed. While she was still free, it would be wise to meditate and recentre herself.

Lirri let out some deep breaths as she felt her muscles relax exactly how they were used to. Even though it had been ten years, she had still continued her meditation and learning about the Jedi. Luke was in hiding and Lirri knew that if needed, she would have to try to teach any new Jedis the basics until Luke was found. The idea of being a teacher scared her. She was just the lucky survivor of a massacre but now she was trapped like an endangered species.

The negative energy around was not helping as she shook her head and reset her mind. The meditation came harder this time with such a suffocating pressure nearby, but she continued. It was like reconnecting with a piece of herself when she reached the mindspot.

 _Lirri._ A voice in her mind rang out as she followed it. It was feminine.

 _Missing apprentice of Luke. We can confirm that she did provide the drive to Lor San. However, she did not reach her latest check in and she's been known to always meet them._ Lirri recognized the voice as General Organa as she continued listening.

 _We know that Kylo Ren and the First Order will be working on getting information out of her. We need to get the drive quickly, while also keeping suspicion low since I am sure that the First Order are retracing her steps._

Lirri thought about what she wanted to tell Leia as she meditated. She knew Leia had been Force Sensitive without any training but it was if Leia could know that this was Lirri truly.

"Leia," she thought before continuing. "I'm still alive. It's Lirri, I am on the First Order ship, they are still trying to get information from me." Her brows furrowed a bit as she pressed these thoughts further.

A sense of completion came through her before a wave of darkness swept over her. Flashes took over her mind as she saw Snoke towering over her, with an army behind her. There was a planet she could see but not place exploding when a ginger haired man pressed a button. Finally was the flash of a girl's face. She had dark brown eyes full of curiosity, and hair tied into three buns as she went through a flight simulator. The sounds of fight rang through her mind before Kylo's face screaming flashed in front of her.

Gasping Lirri fell on the ground with a crash as she immediately knew Kylo was up. One look from him and she could tell that he knew that Lirri had been trying to meditate.

"See something that shocked you?"

Lirri stood up as she dusted off her pants. "Not as much as the time I heard you killed all the Padawans." she retorted and walked towards his dresser, finding a scrap strip of fabric. She used it to tie her hair up from her head as Lirri sniffled a bit.

She avoided his eyes as she muttered. "Can't even get a good meditation with all the dark energy in this place."

Lirri stretched, still drowning in Kylo's clothing as he glanced at her. The shirt hung off of her shoulders, being more of a dress on her and the pants had to be rolled several times just for her feet to come out. The drawstrings on the sweats were pulled tightly, but he could see that it hung low on her hips. The front of the shirt had been tucked into the front of the pants.

"Perhaps you're just looking for the wrong things." he stood up to grab his helmet, lightsaber and cape before putting them on. "Come on."

Kylo did not say where they were going as he grabbed her by the arm and dragged her barefoot out of the room. They walked through the halls, and Lirri could see that the First Order recruits stayed far from Kylo, even back pedalling when needed to get in a room away from him.

He went from being the shy and brooding teen to a person who terrified all that crossed his path. She shook her head but followed. It was too risky to try and escape at the current moment. Not when she was without shoes or a weapon.

A large door opened as they walked into the room. The ginger haired man from her vision was there, standing in a pristine uniform and waiting for them. He seemed impatient.

"Ren about time." the man spoke as Lirri squinted at him. His hair was practically orange compared to her darker auburn hair. "And you brought her." the man was unimpressed.

"My name is Lirri." she immediately shot back as Kylo's hand squeezed on her arm as she glared over at him. "You could use it."

The general ignored her and looked over at Kylo Ren. "You don't even have her restrained."

"I can handle her." Ren stated as he moved his other hand to the back of her neck.

A pressure swallowed up the room as Lirri glanced over to the large throne in front of them. Slowly a figure appeared that took up the entire oversized throne and room. The man sitting in front of the trio was pale and his face was horribly scarred. His nose was not even, there seemed to be holes in his body, and that he had been through great trauma. Even though he was not physically there, Lirri could feel the pressure of his power. It was a familiar hum that she remembered recognizing.

It had been on the training island. The faintest feeling of this power had been encircling Ben, most powerfully when he had murdered Igni. She tried looking down but Kylo's hand kept her head facing up.

"Kylo bring her closer." Snoke declared as Kylo pushed Lirri forward as Snoke leaned down. He raised his brow as Lirri struggled in his grasp. He could feel her energy flaring up as Lirri pushed against Ren.

"Yes, she'll do." Snoke spoke as Lirri cried out in Ren's arms. Her eyes stared at Snoke as she resisted him. Snoke leaned further as Lirri fought harder against Supreme Leader Snoke's push into her mind. She was stiff against Kylo Ren's hands.

Snoke seemed to chuckle as he leaned further. Kylo remained still as this battle of the minds continued until Lirri finally stiffened in his eyes with only the whimpers coming out of her lips. Ren looked up at Snoke, although he did not know what Snoke was looking into in Lirri's mind, he knew that Snoke was interested.

After a few minutes he heard a groan from Lirri as she muttered about getting out. Kylo whispered in her ear. "It'll go quicker if you just let him." However, Lirri seemed to do quite the opposite as she started resisting.

"What an interesting family relationship."

"GET OUT." she shouted before collapsing to the ground on her knees and gasping for air. Kylo crouched down as he brought her up.

Snoke looked pleased in his throne as he leaned back. "Interesting." he spoke before looking at Ren and Hux. "She did not start truly resisting until I got to the memories you were involved in Ren." Snoke spoke. He waved his hand as he faded out. "We'll speak more of this later."

Kylo pulled Lirri up by her shoulders as he pulled her back to the room. He tried setting her on the bed but she stayed clinging to him. Lirri's breathing was still quite heavy and so Kylo decided to let her calm down before he would leave.

Her head rested on his shoulder as Kylo held her close. Lirri's breathing calmed down as she looked at him finally. "How can you work under him?"

Kylo paused as he looked to her. "He gave me the power I wanted. I'm no longer in my family's shadow. He was able to listen to the desires I've always seen in my mind."

Lirri raised a brow as she scoffed towards him. "Are you serious?" she asked while cupping his cheeks. "That man is using you. For all you know he was implanting ideas in your brain. In fact I could count on it." She pointed towards the door with one hand. "That is the same feeling of power and darkness I felt when you started having those nightmares."

"I'm going to be as powerful as my grandfather."

"Ben, I know your grandfather's story. He fell to the dark side so he could stay with and protect your grandmother!" Lirri exclaimed as she took her hand away. "But that is exactly what killed your grandmother. In fact, I think your grandfather's master murdered her while she was in childbirth. Also, your grandfather left the dark side before he died because of his children showing him the way. It's never too late."

She stood up and rubbed her palms against her eyes. He knew that it was her method to try and prevent tears. "You are chasing the main image of Darth Vader, and he's using you like a fucking puppet."

Ren stood up as he squinted. "Why does it matter to you? You can use your family history on me but you know I can't do that to you."

Lirri stiffened as she looked to him. "My family is not important to me."

"It seemed important enough to Snoke." he responded as Lirri sighed. "And important enough for you that you refused to share it with me before."

Lirri's arms wrapped around herself. "The jedis were my real family. Luke was the best parent figure I could ever ask for."

Ren looked at her as Lirri's reddish eyes stared at him. "My uncle and parents were far from good parent figures." He said coldly.

"Really?" Lirri spoke as she stood up to him. "I understand neither of your parents were not home but they tried." Lirri hands were clenched as she stood before him, having to look up to make eye contact with him. "You had a roof over your head, warm meals and they tried while making the world safer for you."

"My parents spent their days in a cantina, constantly moving between shelter and shelter to survive. They started selling me out for party tricks when they discovered I had the Force, beating me if I messed up. I had to do well so I was given food and a blanket. I ran away from home at the age of 8. Your uncle found me and brought me in when I was 10."

Ren paused as he looked at her. It seemed like something that made him feel even more connected to him. "I did not tell you because I was not looking for some terrible family competition and I thought we were going to be able to be our own family but then you left me..."

Lirri's chest was moving heavily up and down as she resisted crying. Ren's instincts kicked in as he pulled her into a tight hug. He could feel the tears being absorbed by his shirt. Ren clung to her as he rested his head onto Lirri's head.

He whispered against her head. "I never wanted to leave you, but i knew I was destined for things."

Her arms were tightly around him as she continued crying. He knew that it was years of built up emotions being let out. "Everyday I talk with grandfather about this conflicting feeling inside me of the light and the dark."

Lirri moved her head slightly, tilting it so that she could be heard. "Ben… you could be great just as yourself. You don't need to prove this to the galaxy, just to the ones you care about."

He sighed and held her close. "I'm conflicted." Lirri looked up towards him as she pressed her hand on his cheek. There was a small smile on her lips. "And confused."

Ren didn't know if it was him honestly asking or for the sake of Snoke's plans. "Why did you not let Snoke see the memories involving me."

Lirri glanced down before looking up. "They are our memories, I don't want him to have them to use against you or me."

Kylo muttered. "I think he took a certain impression when you fought back against him."

"Let him think what he wants." her eyes came to stare up at him. "I will keep those memories for all my days.

Ren nodded as he pushed some hair from her face. "Thank you." he pressed his forehead against hers as his eyes closed.

In the moment, Ren was not afraid of the feelings that were starting to bubble up inside of him. They felt warm and comfortable. It was definitely a feeling he had not had in quite a long time. Snoke wanted him to convert her, but he did not know he could. Kylo did not want her involved any of what was happening and knew now why she was loyal to a fault to Luke.


	17. Chapter 17

**Going to be honest with you guys, I lost a lot of motivation for this fic after seeing The Last Jedi. When I started writing this fic, I was completely in love with The Force Awakens and it is probably my favourite Star Wars move (even with growing up with the others) There was a lot of things in it that made me unhappy and uninspired. So after many months of this fic being almost done, I have the new chapter for you.**

 **Please note, that I did edit the previous chapters (mostly for the sake of grammar) but you do not need to go back and read it for any missing information.**

Lirri laid beside Ben as he slept, he was having a fitful rest. She could not sleep, thinking about the Supreme Leader Snoke's invasive force. Even hours later, she was concerned. This darkness was the same one she sensed in Ben. She felt there was a glimmer of hope, but that was suffocated under the darkness.

Sighing, Lirri sat up as best she could and stared at Ben. He was moving slightly both ways, his hand twitching in occasion. Some noise slipped out on occasion. Everything in her life was a contradiction right now. It felt so right to be laying beside Ben again, as if she could blink and they'd be back at the training. Where maybe by now Ben would have been the teacher and Lirri happily beside him. It was also wrong being here, supposing to be a prisoner and yet here she laid with one of the most evil men in the galaxy.

Pausing, Lirri corrected her own thoughts. Not _laid_ with, but slept. Only because he needed information from her and if the First Order wasn't trying to kill her, she would be working on escaping. With everything that happened in the last few years, Lirri was starting to doubt how either side of the force truly was. Even with all of this drama, the force was still quite balanced in most of the world, just an imbalance in those able to manipulate it.

Lirri was afraid to admit to herself the unresolved feelings in her heart. She had thought they were burnt out when Kylo's heart turned dark. That having that sort of heartbreak ruined the prospect of connecting with anyone else for her. She realized now that it was more she hid her feelings under the business of the Rebellion. These feelings urged her to stay. To convince Ben to come back with her.

Lirri's head started to hurt as she decided pacing would help her think and get her energy out.

However, it meant climbing over Ben who was quite the light sleeper. She was cautious as she did so. Lirri placed her hand on the opposite side of Ben's body first, leaning her weight on it as she raised a knee over his body as she held her breath.

She placed her knee down, before shifting her weight to be more on her right arm and knee. As she lifted her left hand, her eyes connected with the half lidded brown eyes of Ben as she gulped. "Hi?"

Ben stared at her as he raised his brow and grabbed onto her one upper arm, squeezing it cautiously."What are you doing?"

Lirri stayed in the awkward position, as her face showed the pure awkwardness she felt. She knew there was no point in lying to Ben, he would know. "I wanted to pace as I tried to clear up my thoughts." Lirri confessed.

"About?" Lirri's felt her chest tense up as she shook her head.

"I'd rather not say." Lirri reasoned as she kept her position.

"Tell me." Ben spoke as he sat up as much as he could with the current position. "What its about at the very least."

His face was dangerous close, as Lirri's face reddened at the closeness. "Just about everything I had to think about again, Ben." Lirri spoke as she finally got the will to move away from Ben.

She tried getting off the bed again but Ben' arm wrapped around her and pulled her flush against his chest.

"Ben-" Lirri started as she sighed before she muttered under her breath as her eyes avoided his. "I am here against my will thanks to not being as smart as I could. I let myself get unfocused. Yet, here I am, sleeping in your bed thinking about how I missed you. How I miss being able to share with you, and seeing you. You make me question everything I know."

Her voice came out as almost a whisper. "Why can't I let you go?"

"Maybe it's because I won't let you." Ben replied as Lirri paused and looked up to see his eyes as lips connected with her own. They were a bit dry from sleep, but she could feel that there was something behind the kiss. Lirri's hands clung onto the back of his neck as she kissed back.

This was easy all thoughts left her mind. Lirri tilted her head as she deepened the kiss. Her body ached for this contact, being touch starved for nearly ten years now. Ben groaned as he pulled away for a moment as he moved to pin Lirri down on the bed before his lips pressed against hers again hungrily.

Ben was going to keep things friendly between the two, but with each day it had been harder. He let his instincts guide him and ended up kissing her knowing it was then or never again potentially.

His hands pushed the night shirt up as he licked her lips as he teased her lip as he caught it between his teeth and kissing down her jaw and neck. He nipped at her skin, remembering the spots that he used to leave love bites that made Lirri squirmed under his touch. Her small hands were under his shirt, one running up and down his stomach as the other dug into his lower back as if she was going to lose him if her fingers left him.

"Off." she muttered about the shirt as she tugged on the bottom before kissing him again. Ben grinned as he pulled away to comply with her wishes. Lirri followed suit with her own as Ben dove on the chance to explore her skin.

Although they both had matured physically in the last ten years that was sure, but even then both still remembered the things about their partners.

Kylo Ren woke up as he thought about the previous night. A wide grin was on his face as he recalled the events. He glanced down to Lirri who was laying on him. He could see the plethora of love bites and marks from the night before.

Knowing it was time to get out, he carefully slid out from under her as he headed to the washroom. He saw his own appearance in the mirror and was thankful for the covering outfit he wore. There was pink lines down his back and hickeys on his chest. Ren showered and changed, a grin still on his face.

Sure, it was great to be with Lirri again, but it also helped him further along his plans. People do stupid things for love, including change sides in war. He walked out, and saw that Lirri was sitting on the bed with her back towards him. Her hand was on her neck, and he could feel the force at work as the marks on her skin were dulling.

"Why are you healing the marks?" he question as Lirri turned her head to look at him. She stopped for a moment.

"I doubt it'd look good to have me covered in these. I'd be considered a distraction for you."

Kylo sat on the bed beside her as he watched her continue the healing. He had seen her do it a few times at the academy but she had still been learning it. She was always far better at healing others, but both Luke and Lirri would be choosy about who they healed because it was important to understand how your body reacted to pain and ailments. Yes, it would be easy to help those who were sick but then their immune system would not grow.

Or at least that was how Lirri had explained it before. "So, if you were able to heal why did you never heal the lightsaber injury from before?" Kylo asked, a question he had always wondered before.

"I sped the healing along, but I needed to be aware of the mistakes I made." Lirri began. "I should have stopped you when I noticed your mindset was not right, but I hesitated until I couldn't any more. The scar reminds me of the mistakes of my past."

"I think it should remind you that even if you don't believe in violence, that sometimes it is necessary. You gave us too much freedom and hesitated in what you wanted. In life you must take what you want."

He nodded as Lirri pulled the blanket up around her body as she glanced at him. "Are you heading to work?"

Kylo stood up as he sighed. "Yes, I must make my presence known or Hux will think he's in control." he rolled his eyes at this thought before heading to the door. "I won't be able to check on you today."

"That's fine, I'm not going anywhere. What with technically being a prisoner and knowing it's here or that chair again." Lirri spoke as Kylo headed out of the door with his cloak and helmet in hand to put on once he exited the door.

Lirri waited a few minutes as she headed into the washroom to shower. She literally was freaking out about everything and how does she solve this? _Sleeping with Ben._ She rested her head on the tile wall as the water warmed her skin.

Lirri closed her eyes as flashes of Ben came in. Opening them, she let out a groan. That was the thing she wanted to think the least about. It wasn't that it was bad, in fact it was great but it worried her. This made Lirri want to stay here, with the First Order so she could be with Ben. This wasn't right though. Lirri stayed under the hot water for awhile until she felt she had over thought enough.

Since Kylo still hadn't brought her clothes, so she went ahead and stole his once again and used the scrap to tie her hair up.

Lirri stretched as she walked around the room, her body feeling tense from the lack of activity. She pushed a few things further to the walls until she had enough space in the centre.

It was a very made up routine of push ups, sit ups and then she did a handstand to test how long she would be able to hold this. Lirri had gone at least five minutes as she took one hand off the ground. Her elbow immediately buckled as she stumbled to the ground.

She relaxed her breathing as something appeared in her mind. It was Snoke talking with Hux. "Grab her and continue to get information out. You will have only a limited time before Kylo returns. Play it right and you even could convince Ren she fled."

Lirri tensed as she heard Snoke continue. "I would hurry though, since you never know what she could be privy to and at the very least, you can get a few hours of potential information." He had a grin on his face as he looked straight at Lirri. She knew Hux could not see her, but Snoke could.

Lirri broke eye contact as she scrambled to Kylo's desk she needed paper or something. She found a scrap of paper and a pen. Lirri wrote out her note quickly, tucking it under the bed sheets before she made the bed. It was somewhere that he would find it. She was not a fan of being a prisoner, but even less so in the previous conditions.

As she finished making the bed, Lirri heard someone opening the door. Taking a deep breath, she acted cool as the Stormtroopers came in with guns raised.

General Hux came in afterwards with his arms crossed behind his back. "I think it is safe to assume that you've recovered from your previous … incident."

Lirri shrugged as she crossed her arms over her chest. She remained silent as Hux continued. "I will give you an offer. You may stay in this room if you tell us all you know now and see Kylo again later or we can go back to previous methods and Kylo will not be able to assist you this time."

"All I know is that Snoke sent you purposely while Kylo Ren was gone for a reason. That's all I am willing to tell you." Lirri spoke as the Stormtroopers came up and grab her roughly by the arm.

"Wrong answer." Hux replied as they dragged her through the halls. It was halfway across the ship when they finally opened another door and strapped her into a chair.

Hux came up to her as he smiled at her. "Now Jedi, why don't you reveal to us where you left the drive?"

She shook her head as Hux turned to the StormTrooper that was pulling up a table. "Let's begin then."

-

Lirri couldn't tell if it was a few hours later or merely a few minutes. All she knew was that there was at least a few fingers broken on each hand with missing fingernails and her leg felt wrong. She had been beaten solidly and was afraid what they would do if she had started fixing herself up.

Hux had stepped out for a meeting and left her with the Stormtroopers. The two were talking between each other as Lirri thought about the words Kylo had left her with earlier.

Last time she had used it to sleep but this time was going to be used as a way to get free.

"You two." she called out, trying to keep her body calm as she concentrated on the energy around her flowing.

"You will listen to what I say."

"I will listen to what you say." The Stormtroopers repeated.

"You," She said to the one by the door. "You will be prepared to grab Hux when he enters this room and shove him in the closet." Turning to the other one, she spoke. "You will undo these locks."

They repeated back the order as Lirri waited. The moment the door shut behind Hux he was shoved into the closet, the Stormtrooper taking a metal rod from the weapons to barricade the door. Lirri jumped down from the chair as she went to the Stormtroopers. "Keep him in the closet."

She opened the door and looked in either direction. It was clear as she walked… well limped away, mentally coaxing that Lirri could not be seen. As she turned the corner, no one saw her. She kept focused though, knowing at any moment this could change.

Some people were talking about going on a supply run for more fruits as she followed behind them. Using the force like this was like using a muscle after a long time. It was a stretch feeling, but a good one.

Lirri saw the ship as she realized that it would be far too easy to track her if she left on that sole ship and would need to hide out until a group of ships left. It would be smarter to just stay and get a better opportunity later since if she left now, they would find her far too soon and she'd live in that chair from now on.

Plus, Lirri argued to herself, she can let the Resistance know of any leads if possible.

-

Kylo's room was empty when he came in. Empty of noise and energy. It angered him even more than Snoke's declaration. He had been called in to be told that she somehow had escaped.

"Lirri?" he called out, thinking she may be in the washroom or hiding her appearance. When she did not answer, Kylo went to the door and yanked it open. She wasn't there. Anger fueled through him as he started throwing things around his room before sitting on the bed. He knew that she did not know how to open the door since he prepared it that way.

The crinkle noise distracted him as he pulled up the sheets. A piece of paper was waiting for him.

 _Hux is on his way to interrogate me. Find him and I should be there, if not I must have gotten away from him._

He reread the note before Kylo stood up and marched towards the interrogation chambers. When close, he could sense General Hux. Opening the door, he saw two men guarding the closet door.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Keeping Hux in here." they responded automatically and Kylo knew that it was from the Force.

"Go clean that up." he barked instead as he pointed towards the chair that he could see speckles of blood and other things he'd rather not think of as he pried the metal bar from the door handles as he opened the door.

Hux was completely red in the face, almost more vibrant than his hair colour, as Kylo immediately used the force to throw him across the room. "Why did you take her?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about Ren." Hux barked as Kylo raised him in the air.

"Lirri wrote a letter about you taking her." Kylo stated as he added. "You're also a terrible liar." he added before probing into Hux's mind. It was far too easy as the flashes of Lirri in the chair came to mind.

He dropped Hux as he barked. "Lock the ship down. Find her." He stormed out as he tried sensing for any sign of Lirri on ship. He couldn't sense her anywhere as he prodded further and stormed through the entirety of the ship.

Kylo strung out curses as he threw different things as he screamed at Phasma to find her and to demand the ship out for a supply run to return immediately.

She just told him that day she wasn't planning on leaving but now she was gone. When he got to Phasma, the ships on supply runs had already been gone and done multiple pick ups.

He was furious as he barked out for them to find her. Kylo had already destroyed half of the furniture on their ship. Stormtroopers were sent to the planet to find Lirri but were unable to come up with any possible leads.

Kylo was storming around the room as he stopped when he walked by a janitorial closet. Instead of the normal lull, it felt slightly wrong. Deciding to check it out, Kylo opened the door. Behind the boxes of supplies and mop bucket was Lirri. She was beaten and he could see her hands were in terrible shape as she looked up with fearful green eyes.

He looked at her, expressionless through the mask as she let out a sigh. "I… I panicked." Lirri spoke as Ren nodded before turning to a Stormtrooper.

"Call off the lockdown. I have found the escapee." He spoke to them as the sounds of running followed.

Without being able to see his face worried Lirri as she wondered if this whole time she had made a mistake and should have fled. When Ren offered her his hand, she took it and followed him obediently as he helped alleviate the weight on her one leg. As they walked by the hangar, she noticed the ship that she had been planning on stowing away on.

Ren walked her to a medical room as she was surrounded by robots immediately as she was rushed to sit down. The robots wasted no time removing her shirt as her eyes widened. Ren stood near the door, as if ready to smite anyone who came in. From the reflective surfaces, Lirri could see the multiple bruises on her ribs and that the shot on her shoulder was still inflamed. The robots began spraying her as she felt the bruises start stinging less. A different robot tended to her cuts, patching them back up. For her hands, each of the broken fingers were set and wrapped as Lirri rolled her eyes before examining the room around her. It was strange to see the cupboards so well labelled of ingredients for medicine on the one section when a robot was responsible.

Soon the robot moved to her ankle, which was completely inflamed and painful as Lirri bit back a gasp as they wrapped it in a bandage before setting ice on it. The robot turned to Kylo on the other side.

"Anything else, Master Ren?" It questioned as he nodded. "Bring out clothes for her."

"Yes sir." The robot spoke as a pile of clothes were brought over. It was a few days worth as she changed into one pair. Grateful for undergarments and other clothing that fit her now. Out of the outfits, there were two pairs of black outfits and two pairs of white clothing. Lirri bunched them into her arms as she looked up at Kylo.

"What now?" Lirri questioned hesitantly.

"Back to my chambers. The Robots are currently fixing it to allow only myself to open the door." Kylo spoke as he walked to her as he glanced to her feet. "Can you walk?"

"Yes." Lirri spoke as she slipped on the black shoes they gave her. They were flats and thin but better than simply the bare floor. The walk back was silent as Lirri could see the flaming orange hair in the distance. Squinting, she knew that it was her chance as she was hidden behind Kylo's back.

She pushed the Force to lift Hux off of the ground with one foot before swinging him back and forth a few times before dropping him.

When Hux fell, he let out a loud oof before yelling out "KYLO!" Lirri kept her snickering to herself as the arrived at the room once more. When the door shut, Lirri was pushed with her back against the door.

"You think that was funny?"

"I think it was just a hint of revenge." Lirri answered as she heard the hissing of the mask as it was discarded to the side.

"Well, you are lucky that he hadn't realized it was you or else we'd have a repeat of today." Kylo spoke as he held her chin so she'd look at him. The smirk on his face gave his opinion away as Lirri let out a sigh.

"I don't feel lucky." Lirri answered, before lowering her voice. "If I hadn't seen a vision before he came, I don't know what would have happened…"

"The Force works in great ways to protect us when we need it." Ren spoke as he brushed hair out of her face. "We're connected by the Force, it told me when you were in grave danger when you almost drowned."

"Really?"

"Really."


End file.
